The sun fully set, and Sirius started a campfire. Deandra and Frodi had brought as much food as they could find, which didn't amount to much, but after a day or two of eating nothing, Willow thought they'd given her a five-course meal. They found a rather flat rock and placed it over the fire, then toasted their food. Willow ended up eating a roast beef sandwich. It was the best thing she'd tasted in what felt like years.

The adults continued to entertain themselves with boring chatter about what was going on in the world. Willow wasn't impressed; she didn't want to talk about anything except rescuing her friends. When they began to reminisce about their days at Hogwarts, she couldn't take it anymore, so she abruptly stood up and left the conversation. Fidget sensed her sadness and hugged her from within his pocket. His little black eyes welled with sadness.

"I know, buddy, thanks for trying to cheer me up," Willow whispered.

Fidget surprised her when he let out a defiant squeak. He clambered onto her shoulder, then onto her head. He grasped onto a stand of her hair and hung upside down in front of her face, crossing his arms with a huff. When Willow didn't react, he tickled her nose. That got her attention. She instantly burst out laughing, trying to pry Fidget off her hair, but not managing to budge him. The little bowtruckle refused to stop until Willow had collapsed to the sand from laughing so hard.

"You little- that's not- fair!" Willow gasped.

Fidget let out a purring sound that vaguely reminded her of chortling as he retreated to her pocket once more. Willow's face hurt from beaming, but that didn't make the delighted expression disappear right away as it usually did. She thanked God that she had her magical creatures to cheer her up. What did she do to deserve their innocent love?

"Hey, dummy, we already ran away. You don't have to do it a second time."

Willow whipped around. "Paige! I- sorry, I didn't want to talk about Hogwarts yet. My brain is already fried from this year."

The older girl crossed her arms, shrugging her shoulders. "You just don't want to deal with what happened; I get it."

Willow sighed. "I'm a terrible liar."

"No, I'm perceptive. There's a difference." Paige glanced off towards the moon, then traced its rays back to Willow. The older girl found herself watching the way they turned the younger Gryffindor's eyes to a silvery brown. She blushed when she caught herself staring. "Come on, let's go for a walk."

Willow and Paige settled in stride for stride, the sand giving way before their gentle footsteps. The water quietly washed onto shore in waves. Every once in a while, a splash would announce the presence of a fish. The singing of cicadas and the chirping of crickets tickled Willow's ears. A chorus of tropical frogs hummed in the humid night air. She could have sworn that she heard a beast bellowing far off into the trees, but it was probably her imagination; she simply missed the Forbidden Forest.

Paige's expression had fallen into a neutral pensiveness. Willow sensed that her gut was churning with a multitude of emotions that were bound to explode at any second. She watched the way her eyes alighted like a kindling fire, then dulled, as if doused with water, then repeated the process all over again. Paige's eyes. God, were they beautiful: a deep, knowing brown that reached into your soul, able to tell you all your secrets before you even spilled them. Willow would never stop loving Paige's eyes.

Movement from the older girl caught her off guard. To her surprise, Paige reached out her hand, not even looking in Willow's direction. The younger girl's stomach flipped when she realized Paige was begging her to hold hands. Blushing deeply, Willow complied.

She could have sworn sparks shot between their hands when they touched. Willow felt butterflies race through her stomach, sending electrical impulses ricocheting throughout her entire body. Her head went fuzzy for a moment, and her muscles tensed. But it only took a second for Willow to regain control of her body. Only her heart refused to listen to her, racing like she was doing sprint training. She glanced at Paige to distract herself.

"Hey...what's on your mind?" Willow asked.

Paige sighed, obviously having waited for this opportunity for a while. "Well, a lot, actually. Up until a few days ago- my whole life, in fact- I'd accepted the fact that I would never have a real family. I grew used to having terrible parental figures, and I hate to admit it, but I actually liked being free to ignore the adults in my life. It sucked, of course, when I really needed an adult to talk to, but that was when I'd lean on Jewel, Fred, George, or Lee. I had it all figured out.

"Now everything's changed. Not only did I have a family, but they died for me, Willow. They gave their lives for mine. And Aunt Deandra and Grandpa Frodi...they're real. They're alive. They're actually great people, and I guess...I don't know how to deal with it. I should be happy, maybe a little sad for my biological parents, maybe even a little excited, being a descendent of Merlin and all, but I'm not any of those things. I don't know what I'm feeling."

Willow squeezed Paige's hand. "I get it. Sure, I didn't grow up in a home with parents like yours, but I lost my mum on that horrible day so many years ago. Grace Guerrero died on that day, and Grace Fawley now rules in her place. When I found her in the mansion the other day, you know, after I shoved you guys through the fireplace- she was crying. She was worried about me. I think she found the Guerrero in her for a second.

"But it was confusing. I didn't know what I was feeling, either. I should have felt relieved, should have been angry at the Fawleys for doing this to her, but instead, I sat there, nearly blubbering like a baby, not sure what the hell my emotions were doing to me. Parents are hard. Families suck. We just have to cherish the good ones that are left, I guess."

Paige's mouth twitched towards a smile. "You would be a great motivational speaker, you know that?"

"Are you giving me sarcasm?"

"When am I not?" Paige chortled. Her expression softened. "Seriously, though, thanks for that. It's nice to know that I'm not the only one confused out of my mind."

"Nope. We're both crazy."

"Crazy together, I guess."

The Gryffindors walked hand in hand along the beach. They settled into silence for a short while, simply enjoying one another's company. The gentle wind dissipated some of the humidity of the night. Willow and Paige ended up walking on the edge of the lake, allowing the tide to wash over their feet. The warm water seemed to steal away most of Willow's anxiety as well. Her worries were carried far out to sea, then lost for good. A small smile unexpectedly entered her expression. Was she actually...happy?

The girls stopped at a patch of trees that ran right up to the water, about a half mile from their camp. They took a seat side by side on a curving trunk, dangling their feet into the water below. The girls simply allowed the night sounds to wash over their senses and melt the aftermath of the past week away. Willow realized she still hadn't let go of Paige's hand. She cursed the butterflies in her stomach that fluttered up at that recognition.

Willow suddenly became aware of Paige staring at her. She gave it a second, just in case the older girl didn't mean to, then slowly turned towards her. Paige was studying Willow's face with rapt attention. She was drinking in Willow's dark brown irises, her wavy dark hair, her lightly freckled face, and her perfectly pink lips. The blood rushed to both girls' cheeks when Paige's eyes lingered on the younger Gryffindor's mouth.

Willow's heart thumped against her chest. Paige had closed the gap between their bodies, leaving no space between them. They were so close- closer than they'd ever been before. Paige's features were even more striking to Willow than before. The moonlight seemed to enhance them, bring out every detail of the older girl's face. She was beautiful. Willow felt something stir in her gut and once again felt that electrical signal vibrate through her entire body.

Paige glanced from Willow's eyes to her mouth, then back again. The older girl leaned closer. There were only inches between their lips now. Paige gazed at Willow with a questioning look.

"You don't have to- "

Willow didn't let her finish the sentence. She instinctively leaned forward and pecked Paige on the lips. The older girl blinked in surprise, blushing a deep scarlet.

"Hang on, what?"

Willow smirked. "You're welcome."

Paige cupped the younger girl's cheek in her hand, examining her every feature, drinking the moment in. "You are literally the most beautiful human being in the world, you know that?"

"I could say the same about you."

Paige beamed, then rested her head on Willow's shoulder, simply staring out at the lake as they enjoyed each other's presence.

Eventually, the moon drew high in the sky, and it was time to head back. They walked back hand in hand until they got within viewing distance of the adults, then dropped them, pretending as if nothing had happened, but struggling to wipe elated smiles off their faces. The fire was put out, and everyone turned in for the night. Willow and Paige laid side by side within the palm tree hut. When the adults had fallen asleep, Paige turned to Willow and brushed her fingers through her hair.

"Goodnight," she breathed.

Willow beamed. "Night."

And for once, she didn't dream at all.

Willow awoke to the sound of obnoxious snoring. She didn't need to open her eyes to know that it was Sirius. When she eventually did glance around the room, however, she was surprised to see that all three Terrells were still sound asleep. They must have been exhausted from running for several days; Sirius's snoring was no white noise.

Carefully stepping over the others, Willow made her way outside, to where the grey of dawn was just beginning to dull the brightness of the stars. Griffin, Phoebe, and Fidget perked up when they heard her footsteps shifting the sand. Fidget gladly climbed up her arm and nestled into her chest pocket. Griffin trotted over and incessantly begged for pets until Willow gave in, rubbing his belly and smoothing out his ruffled feathers. Phoebe combed through her long hair for sand and other grime. Even Buckbeak, although not acquainted with the other creatures, laid down nearby and gnawed on a leftover bone from his last meal. Willow couldn't help the smile the spread across her face. She even let out a laugh when Phoebe tickled her. What did she do to deserve these incredible creatures?

The sun took its time rising, so in her boredom, Willow wandered off into the trees. They quickly closed in, their trunks growing progressively wider and their numbers suddenly increasing. Thick pockets of ivy dangled from limbs overhead, and a wonderful coolness welcomed Willow into the shadowed jungle. She breathed in the crisp morning air. Her lungs opened up in the less humid morning atmosphere, and her eyes adjusted to the lighting. For once, she felt a sort of peace wash over her body.

Then, inspired by some unknown energy, Willow broke into a trot. She brushed past clumps of undergrowth, somersaulted over bushes, climbed hills covered in tree roots, and leapt from trunk to trunk. Small rivers crossed her path, and she flew over them on tendrils of ivy. The freedom was thrilling; it surged through her head now. Adrenaline kicked in, and she was sprinting and running and dodging and leaping at an inhuman speed, laughing out loud all the while. There was no one to stop her; no one to tell her to be careful; no one to yank her back into reality; she was free.

Willow saw that her powers were following the adrenaline, but she didn't care. Her whole body glowed that beautiful warm honey colour. Electricity excitably hummed within her limbs, causing flowers and saplings to bloom underfoot as she ran. Willow glanced behind her every once in a while to observe the rainbow of colours sprouting in her wake. She found it rather therapeutic, seeing her powers at work. They were dangerous, of course, almost always resulting in damage. But in that moment in time, when she was finally at peace, when she was working and breathing and running and simply living, her powers brilliantly showed how beautiful they could be.

Willow could feel Cebba bursting with pride within her, so she pulled her into the open, casting the ghostly form several meters ahead of her. To her surprise, Cebba immediately broke into a run, matching Willow stride for stride. The older woman genuinely smiled at the young Gryffindor.

"I see you finally took some time for yourself?"

"You could say that," Willow panted, a beam lighting up her face. "How are you keeping up with me?"

"Did it never occur to you that I might have been a runner in my time? I had your powers once, Willow, and I too loved to run. We wouldn't beat each other in a race, if that's what you were wondering."

Willow rolled her eyes. "How about a tree-traveling contest?"

"You're on."

Cebba took off, and Willow was right on her heels. They flashed between the tree trunks, merely blurs among the shadowy forest floor. Each traveled so quickly that the other hardly knew where to go next. Willow's mind was exhausted from thinking so fast, but it was a great kind of tired, one that placed an irreversible smile on her face. She was here, there, everywhere, and suddenly she crashed into Cebba. They fell to the ground in a heap, laughing like there was no tomorrow. Then, they got back up, and the contest was back on. Willow was reminded of home for a fleeting moment when Cebba's taunts sparked a memory of Carlos.

Without warning, Willow entered a tree trunk, and instead of reappearing a few meters away, she fell into tall grass. She face-planted on the side of a small hill. Coughing, she rolled onto her side, only to scramble out of the way as a thick-trunked maple tilted her way. It creaked and groaned, then impacted the ground with a hollow thunk. Willow collapsed onto her back and sank into the soft ground.

Great. Of course I messed up while tree-traveling.

Slowly rising to her feet, she took in her surroundings. There were no jungle trees to be found. In all but one direction, maple and pine trees intermixed and sparsely populated the rolling hills as far as the eye could see. Directly in front of Willow was a grass-covered hillside, complete with a wooden fence at the top. For some reason, the rose-tinted wood seemed familiar. Even the way the wind whistled between the nearby trees felt familiar.

Despite the slight ache that being so far away from Cebba induced, Willow decided to investigate. Cresting the hill, she scrambled over the wooden fence, landing on the other side with hardly a scratch. She brushed herself off, then turned around to take in the new place. It was only a quarter of a second before she suddenly clapped her hand over her mouth.

Shoot, shoot, shoot, I'm not supposed to be here! Stupid brain! Why did you bring me here?

Willow was standing in her own backyard. Her family was sitting on the back porch, discussing something in hushed voices, when Carlos spotted his daughter. He shot to his feet.

"Willow!"

Acting on pure instinct, she sprinted towards them, but instead of embracing everyone, she quickly ushered them inside, glancing at the sky every half second, hoping to God she hadn't been detected by some Ministry device like the Trace. They gathered inside the living room, and once the blinds were shut, Willow faced her family.

"What the hell is with the fence?"

"Safety precautions. They're temporary," Tío Cisco responded. "That's beside the point! Where have you been?"

"Somewhere safe, way down close to the equator." Willow shook her head. "I shouldn't be here. I didn't mean to- I mean, I was just running around with Cebba, tree-traveling and such, and I accidentally thought of home- killed one of the maples, sorry- so now I ended up here, and I'm putting you all in danger."

"We're fine," Abuela protested. She brushed a few leaves and twigs out of Willow's hair. "You're not fine, obviously, but we've got a plan, so if you'd wait to listen to it before you run off again, we can get you out of hiding. We were just about to owl you."

"What's the plan?"

Professor McGonagall stepped out from behind Tío Leonel. "Professor Dumbledore is working on securing you and Ms. Terrell a trial- and a fair one, at that. We have a safe house reserved in London by a dear friend."

Abuelo handed her a metal water bottle. "This is a portkey. It will take you there when you're ready. Once there, we're gathering the rest of our resources and heading to the Ministry to confront the Fawleys- they've pressed some heavy charges on you children. We'll probably stay a night or two in London before we head there, though, to give us time to prepare."

Willow nodded. "Perfect. What about the rest of my friends?"

"They're in the Ministry's custody. Nothing will happen to them with Dumbledore there, I assure you."

Willow swallowed hard. "Got it."

Carlos engulfed her in a hug. "Be safe, and we'll see you soon, okay? This nightmare will be over at some point, I promise."

"I know."

Tío Leonel stiffened. "I hear something. Willow needs to go, now. Someone get her back to the treeline while I check it out." He shot Willow a sad smile. "Te quiero, and don't do anything stupid without me."

Tío Leonel ran off with his brother close at his back. Abuelo and Abuela gave Willow quick hugs, then threw her into Carlos's and McGonagall's arms. She was ushered outside and to the fence, the adults keeping watch with wands at the ready. They wished her good luck and helped her over the fence, instructing her to be at the safe house within the hour. Willow nodded in affirmation as she clambered over the wooden beams. She chose the thickest-trunked tree she could find and sprinted towards it, picturing the lake. Within milliseconds of touching the bark, her feet touched down on sandy ground. She tripped and fell on her face once more. The jungle tree she'd used crashed to the ground behind her.

"WILLOW LUCíA GUERRERO!"

"I can explain!" she gasped, rocking onto her knees.

Paige, Cebba, Sirius, and the older Terrells marched towards her, arms crossed. Every single one appeared livid to the point of bursting a blood vessel. Willow knew she should have felt guilty, but in that moment, all she cared about was getting one step closer to her friends.

"You disappeared without a trace! No warning, no note, nothing!"

"You can't just leave and tree-travel wherever you want without saying something!"

"Guys! I accidentally travelled home!" Willow burst out.

"Wait, what?"

"Yeah, I saw my family, and Professor McGonagall!" she explained, rising to her feet. "They were all there, except Oliver, of course, and they told me the plan they'd come up with. Dumbledore is securing us a fair trial at the Ministry. In the meantime, they found a safe house, and we're going to stay there until the trial. We need to- "

Willow swayed on her feet. Sirius rushed forward and gripped her arm, keeping her upright.

"Paige, can you get the jerky, please?" he asked.

"What?"

"She needs salt. She's used her powers too much," Cebba said.

Paige nodded and ran off, returning seconds later with the packet of jerky the Terrells had been sent with. Willow was forced to eat a few strips of meat before she was allowed to talk again. Cebba returned to her in order to conserve her strength. Thankfully, that and the food seemed to do the trick, and her energy rebounded.

"Gracias. Alright, so anyway, we're all headed to this safe house, and they said we need to go within the hour." Willow held up the metal water bottle. "This is a portkey my grandfather gave me. It'll take us there when we're ready."

Deandra bit her lip. "That's better than waiting for our food supply to dwindle here. Are you sure it's safe for us, though?"

"Completely. The only people that will be there are my family, McGonagall, and others preparing to support us. You would have a miniature army to defend you, not to mention the greatest wizarding duo in all of history."

Frodi gave Willow a thumbs-up. "I'm ready to go if you are."

"Perfect. Let's gather up our stuff and head out. Make sure we don't forget the magical creatures!"

Sirius trudged to the side of the palm tree hut and tethered Buckbeak to his waist. Deandra, Frodi, and Paige gathered up the remainder of their food. Willow returned their dwelling to the earth, then scattered the remains of the fire, burying the ashes in the sand. There was hardly a trace of their presence when she was finished. Phoebe climbed on her shoulders, Fidget dove into her pocket, and Griffin nudged his way under her right arm. The water bottle was placed at her feet, and the rest gathered around her.

"Ready?" she prompted.

Paige glanced at the faraway clump of trees on the beach, cheeks pink. "Ready."

"On the count of three. One...two...three!"

The five placed their hands on the cold metal, and in an instant, they were spinning over and over and over in space. Willow heard Phoebe holler in alarm and pulled her arms tighter around her shoulders. Within seconds, the sensation came to an abrupt halt, and their feet met solid ground. Willow hardly had time to look up before hands were pulling at her shirt.

"Get inside, quick!"

The urgency in the voice alone was enough to kickstart the group into action. They followed the confusing flurry of motion and brown-robed figures, allowing themselves to be pulled in a random direction, until they entered a nondescript building. The door slammed behind them. A figure pulled out a wand and magically sealed the exit shut. Then, to their surprise, the figure levelled the wand at them.

"Tell me something only you would know, now!"

"Whoa, whoa! Easy there!" Willow cried, stepping in front of the Terrells and Sirius. She put her hands up. "I'm Willow Lucía Guerrero. I...I chucked Molly Smith into a tree."

"Seriously, Willow?" Paige sighed.

"What? It's specific!" She turned to address the figure. "That passed, right? Who are you to ask me these questions, anyway?"

A browned hand reached up and removed the hood, revealing a familiar, friendly face. "Don't worry, you passed. I'd recognize your personality halfway across the world."

Willow's mouth dropped open. "Sarah Brown?"

She smiled, throwing her short hair over her shoulder, then gestured for the group to follow her. "Come on. We were just about to serve brunch."

Stepping through the hallway and at last into an open living room, Willow finally recognized the building as the Smith twins' home. Most of the furniture had been cast aside and used as barricades for the windows and doors, but for the most part, it was exactly as she had last seen it: the painting above the fireplace still smiled down at the guests, the live orchids bloomed on vines covering the ceiling, and beautiful music entertained their ears from a self-playing piano in the corner. Sarah led them into the kitchen, where more friendly faces lit up at the sight of them.

"There they are!" Abuela called, rising from her chair. "I was wondering if you'd somehow managed to get lost!"

Willow rolled her eyes. "I'm not that stupid."

"Sure, and Hungarian horntails give hugs."

Suppressing the urge to get into a playful argument, Willow waited in silence as her family and McGonagall greeted the Terrells, then Sirius, though the latter continued to eye the company warily. Willow cleared her throat when she caught her own father staring.

"Behold, the super dangerous, puppy-tickling, romcom-watching, Sirius Black. Aah. Run for your lives."

"I do not- ! Oh…you've got me there."

McGonagall raised an eyebrow. "I do recall Mr. Black levitating his bed through the halls in his time at Hogwarts, claiming that he was still complying with the 'No Students Out of Bed' rule. Have you been up to such mischief lately?"

"No…?" At a pointed look from McGonagall, Sirius broke into a grin. "Okay, yes, but I'm not blowing up suits of armor anymore! I've gone on to bigger and better things now!"

"He's innocent," McGonagall declared.

"It was hardly a question before," Willow grumbled. "But I digress! Did you say that there was food?"

Sarah let out a laugh. "Onto more important matters, I see. Yes, we've got a whole bunch of food, and I hope it satisfies your carbohydrate addiction."

Willow gratefully accepted three full plates of meat, bread, and deserts. She never realized how ravenous she'd become, rationing her food with Sirius. She made sure to save some meat and veggies for her creatures, which had to stay put in the living room. Buckbeak didn't appreciate being kept so close to Griffin, but they were beginning to get along, and the fact that Willow gave them equal amounts of food seemed to keep their jealousy at bay.

Fifteen minutes into their feast, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley popped out of Sarah's fireplace. Willow jumped up in surprise at their arrival. They found her and Paige immediately and captured them in a hug. Before they could even ask, Mr. Weasley explained that they had opted into the plan last-minute, considering three of their own childrens' livelihoods were at stake, too. Willow's mood plummeted once more. Her expression drooped. She'd gotten Fred, George, and Ginny into this craziness, not to mention Colin Creevy! How on earth did she manage to create such a mess?

"Hey, what did I say about blaming yourself?" Sirius called from across the table. "It's not going to help matters."

Mrs. Weasley nodded. "Listen to Sirius, Dear. Heaven knows that you were trying your best. They went after you on their own accord, mind you, and that's not for you to carry on your shoulders. Ginny needs a stern talking to on picking her battles; she and the twins ran right into the auror's arms! They all turned themselves in without thinking about the consequences."

"And let's not forget that you'd already done a remarkable act to save George and Paige," Mr. Weasley added. "George was all sorts of pissed off that you hurt yourself. We thought we'd never hear the end of it."

"Hurt herself? What do you mean?" Sarah suddenly asked.

Paige groaned. "This idiot stabbed herself as leverage for letting us go."

"YOU STABBED YOURSELF?"

"Can we talk about this later?" Willow begged. "I'm fine. It's not the first time I've been impaled."

"Not the first time?"

"Now you see what we've been dealing with, Sarah," Carlos sighed. "Oliver comes home with these wonderful stories..."

"Okay, can we get back to saving the friends I've managed to get in trouble, please?" Willow said. The attention was turned back to her. "Thank you. Yes, I'm extremely stupid, but that's not news. We can try and fix that later. Right now, I'd like to know what's happening with the plan. Are we marching in and demanding a trial, waiting for an invitation, blowing something up and using the trial as a cover-up...?"

"No, Willow, we're not blowing something up this time," Tío Leonel chuckled. "I tried, but it didn't make the final cut."

With everyone finally seated at the table, Abuela, Tío Leonel, and McGonagall explained the plan to the newcomers. Dumbledore had just sent word before they arrived that the trial would take place four days from now, at ten in the morning. The only kicker was that the Minister demanded that Willow and Paige be held under high security with the rest of their friends until the trial if they wanted it to be fair. Dumbledore had agreed to the terms, deeming it equal on both ends, so Willow and Paige would be escorted to the Ministry the next morning by Mr. Weasley, Carlos, McGonagall, and Abuela and held with their fellow "criminals".

When the trial date came, they were to be dressed in the best clothing they owned, and they were to keep their mouths shut unless spoken to. Mr. Weasley warned them that the Minister would hold every word they said against them. Willow glanced at Paige, coming to a silent agreement that they'd hold each other to the silent standard. They both knew they struggled quieting themselves when they knew the truth- and having Lucius involved wouldn't help matters.

Tío Cisco and Carlos had received intel from the centaurs surrounding the Fawley property that Grace was whispered about in the house frequently, but it didn't seem like she was going to testify. The older Fawleys were the ones pressing charges, so they would have to fight against cranky, aging, pureblood maniacs. Willow couldn't wait to give them a piece of her mind about how they treated her mother.

McGonagall reassured them that Dumbledore had prepared a stellar defense. The Hogwarts headmaster was livid that so many of his students were being held at the Ministry when they should be enjoying their long-awaited summer with their families. They were sure to win the battle, whether the Minister wanted them to or not, and even a condemning case from the Fawleys and Lucius together wouldn't stand a chance against the wizened headmaster's evidence.

Willow didn't need reassurance. She just wanted to see her friends again.

After brunch, the adults spent time going over the plan once again, then broke off to distract themselves for the rest of the day. Willow understood all too well; their children had been taken away from them, and the prospect of losing them poisoned their minds with horror. They were strong to not give into complete misery. Only Deandra, Frodi, and Sirius appeared on the brighter side, as feelings go, but that was because they were finally safe after spending several long years outrunning pursuers.

Night arrived sooner than expected, and though Willow wished to God that she could go outside and sleep in the summer greenery, she couldn't risk being seen. Instead, she entertained herself by playing with her creatures, getting the last of their energy out before bedtime. She used her powers to create a nest for them (and a separate one for Buckbeak, who absolutely refused to sleep anywhere near Griffin). Though it pained her not to do it herself, she handed her wand to Sirius so he could levitate the nest. She'd found through telepathically conversing with Phoebe that they preferred to rest higher up, that it put them at ease. Willow couldn't agree more. If she got back to Hogwarts for her fourth year, she was going to create a perfect nest in the rafters of the secret room.

When. When I get back to Hogwarts.

The adults began to turn in for the night, one by one, until Willow was the only one left awake. Even Paige had gone off and found herself a spot to crash. Willow sighed, beginning to feel the exhaustion of trying to stay upbeat and optimistic under the crushing circumstances. Climbing into the nest with her creatures, she curled up between Griffin and Phoebe, stroking their fur as she stared at the ceiling.

Merlin help us.

"Stay close, keep quiet, and whatever you do, don't make eye contact with anyone."

Willow and Paige nodded. Mr. Weasley gave them a quick smile, then turned and disappeared in a flash of emerald flame. McGonagall and Abuela followed. Willow glanced at Paige when she didn't step into the fireplace. The older girl raised her eyebrows.

"You seriously think I'm going before you after what happened last time?"

Willow rolled her eyes. "Ministry of Magic."

Before Paige could react, she knocked the ash out of her hand and shoved her through the fireplace. Willow laughed when the older girl flipped her off as she fell through the flames. Carlos shot her a look.

"What?" Willow challenged. "I'm the protector. There's no way she's topping me- and I don't mean it in that way, so stop looking at me like that!"

Carlos guffawed as his daughter stepped into the fireplace. For once, Willow managed to pull herself out of the floo network at the correct grate, and only half-stumbled upon exiting. She brushed herself off just as Carlos appeared behind her. Paige slapped her, then pulled her aside to where Mr. Weasley was gathering their small forces. Once Carlos arrived, he whisked them away, into the main passageway of the Ministry. Willow wondered why she'd never seen this part before; she'd been to the place twice now, and both times had been in the lower workings, in or near the dungeons. It much different than below, with its glass windows stretching several stories high overlooking the central fountain-statue. There was light. People were friendly. It was totally different than her previous experiences.

The crowd of commuting workers was shoulder-to-shoulder, making it hard to move, but Willow found herself breathing easy. Most of the Ministry workers smiled as she passed them by. She and Paige made sure to follow Mr. Weasley's orders to keep their heads down, but Willow couldn't help the occasional glance to take in the magic. Some of the architecture was definitely enforced by magic, such as bridges with no supports, water that danced without being routed, and carts that opened compartments without human help. There were paper airplanes everywhere, too, seeming to zoom of their own accord to some designated destination. Willow preferred owls, but the idea was ingenious.

Her initial nerves about turning herself into custody faded away as she stepped into the elevator with Mr. Weasley and the rest. They descended several floors below the main level until they finally arrived in a familiar hall. Willow swallowed hard and tried to forget about the sickening images she'd been shown in the conference room, the screams of her mother as she was tortured only meters away, the lonely hours in the dungeon only a staircase below; she'd have to throw that heavy stuff off her shoulders for now. It was a problem for a later time. Now, she had to focus on being strong for her courageous, stupidly brave friends. They needed her optimism to get through this.

Paige froze up beside her when the elevator doors slid open. Willow followed her gaze and immediately diverted her eyes before she could say something vulgar. Fudge stood only two meters away, a condescending smile etched into his face. Willow grinded her teeth as he exchanged a few words with Mr. Weasley and Professor McGonagall. Paige reached for her hand, and Willow took it, giving her a reassuring squeeze.

I won't let them get to your family. I just won't.

The Minister led them down the corridor, Carlos and Abuela still keeping Paige and Willow between them. They stopped in front of a familiar door. Willow held her head high and aggressively shoved away her memories. This was different. Grace wasn't being tortured, and she wasn't viewing the horrifying presentation, but all of her friends' lives were at stake now, and she had to get them out. She had to free them. Dwelling on what had already happened wasn't going to change the past, the present, or the future.

She had to suck it up and do it.

"Into the conference room you go," Fudge said, confiscating their wands in one sweeping motion. "Your friends will be inside. Try to escape, and there will be no trial, only an immediate guilty sentence, you hear me?"

Willow nodded. "Loud and clear." She turned to her father and grandmother. "Don't worry about me. I'll be safe."

Carlos gave her a quick hug. "You know I'll worry."

"Just don't break any rules this time, Nieta," Abuela said.

"I won't."

Fudge ushered them inside, and before she could even blink, the door was slammed behind them. Paige and she exchanged steely expressions. Silence, silence, silence. No words around Fudge.

"WILLOW!"

She would have recognized that voice anywhere. "Oliver!"

The dark-haired boy sprinted into her arms, laughing uncontrollably. Then, a whole mob of her friends attacked, surrounding her in a group hug, shrieking and chuckling and crying with the pure joy of seeing her alive and well. Fred, George, and Lee tackled Paige on sight. Willow struggled to unbury herself from the mound of teenagers.

"Guys! Hey! Whoa! Ah! Please let me up! You know about the five second rule!"

"I don't think that applies in this particular situation!" Lisa protested.

"YOU'RE ALIVE!" Lavender screeched.

"Of course she's alive! She's a professional at surviving near-death situations!" Dean said.

"What even happened to you? Did you fight off the aurors?" Colin squeaked.

"It's a little more complicated than that..."

Willow launched into her story before her friends could ask a million questions. She explained everything, from the moment she woke up in the hospital wing to the seconds leading up to her being locked away with them. They sat in a tense anticipation, hanging onto her every word, only interrupting to ask critical questions about Sirius. When she finished, they had a million questions about Paige, Deandra, and Frodi, and especially about how Paige's patronus would work in the prophecy. They were sorely disappointed that Paige didn't have her wand, because they were dying to know what would happen almost as much as Willow.

"So...we're just waiting here, then?" Lee said. "Being watched by a hundred hidden cameras?"

"It's only for a few days, then Dumbledore will prove us innocent," Sam reassured him.

"Yeah, Lucius doesn't stand a chance against him," Cypress snorted. "He tried to make some snobby remark when locking us up about us being worthless, and not even Slytherins; I put him in his place, and he couldn't even come up with a comeback. Idiot."

Willow grinned. "You are the best at manipulating people's words, though. Did he say anything actually important?"

"No. He just ran his mouth the whole time. Although he did grumble something about us ruining a gathering when he walked away; only a few of us heard it."

"Hm. Sounds about as irrelevant as the entire Malfoy family," Sally said.

"Hey, since we're stuck here for a few days, what if we play a game to pass the time?" Ginny suggested. "Preferably something that takes a really long time."

The rest agreed, and soon, they were playing a massive game of telephone. Cypress always came up with the greatest one-liners– which, inevitably, meant that they morphed into the greatest laughs they'd had in days. Parvati and Padma turned their ridiculous results into a sort of madlib, writing down their lines to create the craziest work of art they'd ever heard. Their paragraph somehow began as a king ruling the meat factory, then progressed to a fish climbing up a gutter, and finally ended as the heroine mole rat defeating the evil cloud spirits.

Willow laughed so hard that she stepped out of the conference room for some fresh air. Although there was nothing more to do in the corridor than the conference room, she found subtle ways to entertain herself, such as studying the plants in the hallway. There were some lavender flowers to her left, and far down the hall, a bushy miniature pine tree sprouted from its pot. During her examination, she noticed many hidden cameras aimed at her position. Willow figured this was the surveillance Lee had mentioned. Figures. They couldn't even walk down the hall to use the bathroom without being monitored.

A flash of white flickered in the corner of Willow's eye. She whipped her head in that direction. A figure darted into the men's restroom, the door left swinging on its hinge from his entrance. Making sure to act like she simply needed to use the restroom, Willow sauntered her way over, casually strolling into the men's side instead of the women's. She barely passed the first stall when she was suddenly slammed against the wall.

"What the hell- Draco?"

"Wisp! Keep it down, will you?" he hissed. "You're lucky I'm even here! My father would kill me if he found out I wasn't in his office!"

"Your father- what?"

Draco sighed frustratedly. "My father is here organizing the Fawley's prosecution against you, dumbarse. I hope Dumbledore put some time into his defense, because my father has some very damning things to say about you. And now- I can't believe I'm telling you this, but he's making me testify against you."

"What? How can you even add to the case?"

"Apparently I'm a witness for your 'erratic and inherently dangerous' behaviour at school. You did attack me for no reason this year."

"No reason?" Willow spluttered. "Apparently being a prejudiced, loudmouthed arsehole and taunting my friends is no reason at all for someone to put you in your place. Sure, I shouldn't have resorted to violence, but do you really blame me for shutting you up?"

Draco's eyes burned. "I shouldn't have come here. You don't deserve my help."

"Help? What help could you possibly give me?"

"I'm not testifying, dumbarse! I was going to tell you that my father was providing specific evidence from your attack on the Fawley family– such as the dead Fawleys you left in your wake, the photos of their destroyed living room, the blade you used to 'stab your mother', and video of Grace's 'brainwashing' that you induced on her– but I think that would be going too far."

Willow's mouth dropped open. "What- you're telling the truth? Every word?"

Draco nodded. His silver eyes flashed, a note of sadness flickering in their storm. "Like I said, you don't deserve my help."

The words hit Willow like a truck. She stared at Draco with a vortex of emotions fighting to suppress and express themselves all at once. There was confusion, anger, sadness, glee, and sheer pain. Willow didn't know which ones were real, which ones were true, and which one was what she was actually feeling. Draco released her, and she staggered sideways.

"Why- why are you doing this?" she coughed.

"Because we have more in common than you think, Willow. You'll realize it soon enough."

Draco stormed away, erasing all aspects of emotion from his face. Willow sank against the wall and sat there for a long time, his words echoing in her head. She knew exactly what he was saying, but the truth hurt more than the lie. She didn't want to think about Draco's life. His father was a terrible person, and his clear allegiance with dark forces would most definitely be forced on his son. Willow didn't want to same to happen to her. Draco's reality was so different from hers.

But if his warning was real, their realities were about to be much of the same.

Willow stared at the wall in silence for the millionth time that day, wishing to God she could at least use her powers to make something interesting happen. But they were being monitored 24/7. Hidden cameras were everywhere. She didn't have a snowball's chance in hell of going unspotted. If the Ministry, let alone the Fawleys, found out that she was the War Child...she'd never forgive herself.

Now that they'd been given three days to do practically nothing, Willow finally got a chance to chat with Miranda. She felt so bad about not being there for him when he was going through such a difficult time; she apologized profusely and promised to drop everything she was doing if he ever needed anything. Miranda waved her off, protesting that it was really painless. He explained that he had been sitting in bed the night after Willow had disappeared, mad at the world, when the shift had happened again. He had been so preoccupied being angry at everything else that he simply accepted it, hardly noticing it. That was when he'd come to the realization that there wasn't something wrong with him; he was simply genderfluid, so whenever his body metamorphed to female, he'd use female pronouns, and vice versa.

Willow accepted the new information with a glowing pride for her friend. Miranda had figured out his identity all on his own, and he was finally embracing himself with open arms. Willow remarked how cool his new name was, and loved how it was gender neutral, so it would stay consistent no matter how many times Miranda's body decided to shift. She did ask, though, how his sexuality would work, considering the fact that his gender switched in and out. Miranda replied that he had no idea, but had a feeling that he was bisexual because his male self was now attracted to females, and the feelings would probably carry over to his previously straight female self, making for a confusing sensation. Willow patted her friend on the back; and she'd thought being bisexual in itself was bad enough!

After a while of sitting in silence, Miranda got up to hang out with his Ravenclaw friends. Willow was alone for a little while longer, spinning in her chair, until George decided to come visit her. He asked her how Sirius was doing, being on the run again and all, then wondered if his mum was ready to kill him and Fred and Ginny. Willow laughed and replied that she was ready to "give a talking to" and appeared more worried than angry. George rolled his eyes, reminding her that Molly Weasley never gave just a talking to.

Paige had told him a great deal of what had happened since they were separated, but George was still curious about the prophecy deal. Willow sighed and related everything she knew to him. His eyebrows shot up in surprise when she told him that she'd have to follow Paige's patronus to the next step. He admitted that he'd forgotten there was a next step. Willow had to admit the same, realizing that whatever happened next would most likely be even trickier than figuring out the first task. Would she ever get a chance to live a peaceful life?

Willow pulled her locket off her neck, examining it in the palm of her hand. She handed it to George when she got bored of it, and he was kind enough not to ask about the picture, or the diamonds, or the reason she wore it all the time. A sad sort of emptiness overwhelmed her once again. She'd been so close to her mum only a handful of days ago, and now Grace Fawley was back in her place. She was so close! Her mum was still in there somewhere, buried deep beneath the pain, trauma, and brainwashing the Fawleys inflicted on her on a daily basis. If only there was some way to free her...

But Grace had made her choice five years ago when she committed that unspeakable act.

George handed her back the locket, and Willow put it back on, hoping to have it out of sight and out of mind. She steered the conversation back toward happy thoughts. After this whole fiasco was over, they'd get to go home! They'd get to enjoy summer! Willow would get to play in her summer soccer league, and George would get to pester his siblings for hours on end. So many fun times were ahead of them! In fact, George remembered that he was attending the quidditch world cup with his family that very summer! He had Willow sold at "quidditch" and she couldn't wait to ask her family if they could go.

They got into a full-blown discussion of quidditch after that. Wood had graduated, which meant there was an opening for keeper on the Gryffindor team, and although that wasn't Willow's position, she was one step closer to being full-time on the team. She hoped to God that someone on the team would decide to switch positions so she could be on the pitch. How cool would that be, bringing her house glory in front of the whole school, all while beating up another team on broomsticks? And then there was the quidditch cup! They could win for the second year in a row, and she would truly be a part of it!

In their excitement, Willow hadn't realized how close she'd drawn toward George. She glanced down and realized they were sitting right beside one another, not a millimeter between them. In fact, at some point, she'd taken George's hand, probably while trying to convey some sort of excitement to him. They made eye contact and blushed. Willow released his hand and put a few inches between them, apologizing for being so touchy. George tried to apologize at the same time, mirroring her exact words. They looked at each other for a long moment, then cracked up about it, their laughter a beautiful sound in the depressing, quiet room.

All of a sudden, Willow's ears throbbed from input down the hall. She honed in with her powers and recoiled from how loud it was. Raised voices were approaching from a few hundred meters away. There was also a pair of footsteps, irregular and choppy, like they were stopping and going inconsistently. Willow's eyes widened when she recognized the voices.

"Oh crap. I'm dead."

George furrowed his brow. "What?"

"Draco and his precious father are arguing in the hallway, and I think it's my fault." Willow jumped down from her chair and crossed the room, pressing her ear to the door. "Yep, it's definitely my fault. This can't be good." She listened some more as George stepped nearer. "Yay, this should be fun! They're talking about what they're going to do with me. As if they can touch me."

"Um, Willow? Lucius is a higher-up here," George reminded her. "He can pretty much do whatever he wants, even to prisoners."

"Wait, what?"

Before she could question him any further, the door burst open. A livid Lucius glowered on the other side. He took his time casting his cruel eyes over the children in the room, then ended by staring into Willow's soul. She pretended he was irrelevant and refused to make eye contact with him. Instead, she raised her eyebrows at Draco.

"What did I do this time?"

"You persuaded my son not to testify, that's what you did, you pathetic snake!" Lucius growled.

"Did you hear something, George? I think it was a fly, buzzing in my ear," Willow said, creasing her forehead. "Wait, wait, I think it's someone speaking...! Oh, no, that's the air vent."

Lucius suddenly snatched Willow by the shirt and dragged her out of the room. "You're officially being held under high security on my personal terms. Fight back, and you'll be punished further."

"What? You can't- "

Willow coughed violently, her stomach spasming where Lucius kicked her. She wanted so badly to kick him where the sun didn't shine, but she refrained, deciding to let it wait until after the trial. She kept her face neutral and refused to look at the vile man.

"Well, goodbye until the trial, I guess," Willow muttered.

Oliver, Lisa, and Padma sadly waved goodbye while the rest of her friends glared daggers at Lucius. He slammed the door shut and magically locked it, then roughly shoved Willow ahead, commanding her to walk. She begrudgingly did as she was told. Draco fell into step with her, but didn't say a word, and didn't even look at her. His face burned red- though from anger or embarrassment, it was impossible to tell.

Lucius dragged her into his office and held her against the wall. He nodded at Draco, who promptly announced his destination, grabbed a fistful of floo powder, and disappeared into the emerald flames. Willow still denied Lucius the pleasure of seeing her angry eyes when he turned back to her.

"Don't get any bright ideas. You are a...guest, at Malfoy Manor, and I expect you to behave as you are meant to. Enough of this blood traitor rubbish; you were born pureblood. Act like it while you are in our company."

"My blood status died with my mother's decision. The pure blood followed her, not me," Willow growled.

Lucius's lip curled. "You'll learn soon enough, Willow, that your pure blood is closer to the surface than you think."

Without giving her a chance to ponder his words, Lucius apparated, sending Willow's vision into pandemonium. Her stomach flipped at least seven times. At long last, they touched down on hard wooden flooring. Willow allowed her sense of equilibrium to return, then took in her surroundings.

The Malfoy Manor was darker than she'd imagined. The theme appeared to be dark grey; all the floors, cabinets, and arm chairs displayed the trend. It reminded Willow somewhat of the Slytherin common room. Fitting, really, for a traditionally Slytherin family. But there was something...sinister about the place. The way the walls seemed to listen, the way the paintings appeared to watch; it was downright creepy. Willow almost felt sorry for Draco. How could anyone raise a child in this cold environment?

The Malfoy prince himself stepped into the room after a few second delay, followed by a woman Willow assumed to be his mother. The woman gave her a stiff nod.

"Hello, Willow."

"Mrs. Malfoy."

Lucius painfully wrenched her arm as he dragged her toward his family. "Where should we put her? The dungeons haven't been used in a long while."

Mrs. Malfoy pursed her lips. "Maybe not the dungeons, Lucius. Don't you think that's a bit cruel?"

"Cruel? This girl got away with murder!"

"Excuse me? I did not murder anyone, thank you!" Willow protested. "I'm not capable of killing a fly, let alone my own flesh and blood! The Fawleys- "

"Are half dead because of you!" Lucius fumed. "You're going in the dungeons!"

"No."

Willow, Lucius, and Mrs. Malfoy whipped their heads in Draco's direction. His expression was stone cold, revealing nothing about his thoughts. He stared down his father for a good minute before he spoke again.

"She's not going in the dungeons, and I'm not testifying. Don't bother making dinner for me."

Draco stormed out of the room. Willow heard footsteps stomp up a long staircase, then the slam of a door above. She struggled to understand what had just happened; Narcissa and Draco were defending her? They had no reason to do so, even if they sensed she was innocent. Unless...was Lucius a bully to his own family?

"Narcissa, go talk to him. Now. He knows better. As for you," Lucius snarled, yanking Willow by the arm, "you're staying in the library. Try to leave, and I will hex you, then chain you in the dungeons."

Willow didn't protest. She was just fine with staying in a library all day. Lucius drug her down a surprisingly sunlit hallway, then tossed her through an open door. He smirked as she tripped and fell onto the library floor. Willow finally met his cold, malicious eyes with a hard stare. Lucius's mouth twitched into a frown when she didn't react. Apparently disappointed, he stalked away, leaving the door wide open. Of course. He was trying to bait her into leaving.

What an idiot. Like she would leave a library if she didn't have to.

Willow immediately began her search for a couple novels to read. The Malfoy library was still decorated with that dark grey theme, but well-lit enough to provide the perfect reading area. All sorts of magical and non-magical volumes alike lined the shelves, providing weeks' worth of reading material. Although the library wasn't as large as Willow's own, it was sufficient in its amount of new titles to keep her occupied, and provided plenty of spaces to curl up and read.

After gathering a few magical creature books by Newt Scamander, she settled into a mountain of bean bag chairs, shifted into an awkward position that she somehow found comfortable, and got to reading. She delved deep into the care of fantastic magical creatures, such as the snallygaster, hidebehind, and thunderbird. Willow fascinated herself with Newt Scamander's countless adventures documenting these creatures. She hoped to someday become as great a magizoologist as he.

"Wisp."

Willow finally glanced away from her book. Draco stood in the doorway of the library, arms folded, staring directly at her. Willow shrugged and went back to reading. Several minutes passed until Draco finally sighed and walked over to her, ripping the book out of her hands.

"Wisp, I'm trying to talk to you."

"I'm aware."

"Then why are you ignoring me?"

"Why did you allow your father to abduct me?"

Draco's nostrils flared. "He did not abduct you, he's just keeping you in a different place than the rest of your friends. Besides, now you've got entertainment. You're better off in this library."

"Fair point. But he kicked me, and you didn't say a word."

"Have you ever heard of picking your battles?"

Willow glared at him. "Yeah, I have. And I've picked some wrong ones, sure, but in the end, I fight for what is right, what is just, and what is fair. You only fight when it benefits you, Draco."

"I don't care about your moral code rubbish. You sound like a medieval idiot from one of these books." Willow cocked an eyebrow. "Contrary to popular belief, Wisp, I do read books outside of school, and some of them happen to be written by Muggles. Not many wizards have the brains to write good fantasy novels."

"Clearly."

Draco's eyes flashed. "Are you going to be like this the whole time I talk to you?"

"Are you ever going to stop pretending the past never happened?"

"Look, I'm sorry I hurt you, Wisp, but I'm trying to do something good for once!" Draco exploded. "Did you not hear the way I talked to my father earlier? He never tolerates me ordering him around. And I've refused to testify against you, too, so I'm likely to get punished for it sometime soon. I'm sticking my neck out for you, and you don't even care!"

"Aw, poor Draco, getting a slap on the wrist by his precious daddy."

"It's more than a slap on the wrist, Wisp! It's- " Draco suddenly stopped, his whole body stiffening. He straightened up and shook his head. "Nevermind. You don't care."

"Wait a second! Yeah, I do care! You don't have to tell me what's going on, but I've got an idea now, and I'm sorry." Draco looked at her skeptically. "I'm sorry, Draco, I really am. I don't want to get you into trouble."

"Well it's too late now, so thanks a lot." He plopped down in a chair a few meters away. "Whatever happened between us? What the hell did I mess up? Whenever I ask, you never give me a straight answer. What do you want from me?"

Willow gazed into his storming eyes. "The truth."

Draco looked like he was about to say something, then shut his mouth, for some reason thinking better of it. He stared at Willow for a long time. Neither one made a move. Then, Draco picked a book from the shelves, sat down across the room, and began to read. Willow rolled her eyes and buried herself in her book once more. She didn't need to glance up to know that Draco was constantly looking at her from over his book. He was brooding again.

She didn't care.

Three mornings later, Willow was standing in the Ministry of Magic, picking at the buttons on her suit. The Malfoys had done their best to impress certain pureblood behaviours on her during dinners, but so far, the only thing that stuck was dressing to impress. Willow still defied them in wearing a suit instead of a dress. Narcissa appeared to approve of her choice; in fact, Mrs. Malfoy didn't dislike Willow at all. She was a rather stoic woman, and she obviously couldn't care less about her husband's opinions. Lucius may have downright hated Willow, but Narcissa had no problem with the Gryffindor.

That's because she hasn't had a taste of my sarcasm yet, Willow thought smugly.

Lucius shoved her out of the elevator at the proper floor. They proceeded to the courtroom, Willow getting whacked with Lucius's cane all the while. She smirked at his annoyance. He wanted her to walk like a proper lady, but she purposely veered left and right, skipped whenever she felt like it, and altogether stopped to admire useless details in the walls, all in an effort to piss him off.

It worked.

The courtroom was already filled with people upon their arrival. In fact, they were the last ones there. Willow waved hello to her white-faced friends, then her determined family. She gave them a steely nod. She was confident in their defense. They would win; they had to win. Surely Dumbledore, arguably the greatest wizard of all time aside from Merlin, could pull this off.

Fudge pounded his gavel on the podium to begin the trial. Lucius gave his long, arduous speech, which unfortunately captured the attention of his audience. Some of the Fawleys clapped when he stepped away. Willow rolled her eyes. The pureblood maniac could convince fellow biased wizards, but there was no way he'd win the hearts of the jury like Dumbledore would. Willow watched with strong resolve as her headmaster stepped up and gave a beautiful, fluid, heart-wrenching speech about poor innocent children trying to go about their lives and save their families, expertly leaving out the Terrells' existences entirely.

Willow was called up to the stand as the first witness and defendant. Fudge eyed her carefully.

"You say that your mother was being tortured by Ministry officials; is this true, to your knowledge?"

"Yes, Minister."

"And you say that she's been brainwashed by the Fawleys, her own flesh and blood?"

"Yes, Minister."

"You are convinced of this serious accusation?"

"Yes, Minister."

Fudge shuffled a few papers around. "Are you sure it has nothing to do with your brother?"

Willow's blood ran cold.