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With slow, hesitant steps down the dark, empty corridor, Birdie kept her wand at the ready as she moved as softly as she could, pausing at every sound and shadow that jumped. The sun had set completely now, and Hogwarts had fallen into an encompassing darkness that sent shivers down Birdie's back. There were no lit candles, no one in the portraits, not even a ghost in sight. Only a few rays of moonlight streaked through the windows, intensifying the eerie feel of the lonely castle.

Peeking into each empty room as she passed them, Birdie tried not to breathe as she kept moving, mentally encouraging herself that there was no turning back. Agrippa padded at her side, snarling around every corner before they turned, her gray spotted fur bristling every so often in anticipation.

Turning another corner, Birdie gasped and jerked back against the wall as a loud clang echoed through the hall. Agrippa jumped and scurried back until she was against the wall at Birdie's feet, holding a paw up tensely.

There was silence for a long moment.

Birdie glanced down at Agrippa and jerked her head in the direction of the hallway they nearly turned around. Agrippa gulped before cautiously stepping toward the angled wall and peeking around the corner, jerking back before really taking a good look around the corner. She paused, then looked up at Birdie and nodded her head before moving down the hall.

Birdie slid along the wall and around the corner after the kneazle. She looked around for what may have made that noise. She realized a window at the end of the hall was open, and a crow was struggling to carry a can out the window.

Birdie eyed the bird closely as she watched the crow lift the half-filled can of beans from the ground, flutter up to the window with great effort before pausing on the sill, trying its best to pull the can up to the sill and rest it on the ledge. The crow failed and the can fell to the floor with a loud clang, starling Birdie and Agrippa, who froze halfway down the hall.

The crow hesitated, lifting its head, and staring at Birdie curiously, turning its head to eye her with one eye, the bright moon behind the bird illuminating its shape.

Then, a wolf leaped out from a side hallway and snatched the squawking bird, thrashing its head as it landed on the ground.

Birdie slammed a hand over her mouth and ran into an empty classroom to her right, Agrippa at her heels. She hid behind a desk as she heard a scuffle.

She should have known it was a full moon. She should have checked before she left the tower like everyone else who dared going out. How could she have been so foolish? And why of all days did her first night have to include werewolves.

She peeked out from her hiding place to see two wolves with tufted tails in a heated game of tug of war with the raven until the poor creature tore in two, and both wolves inhaled the small portions of meat right in front of the doorway. One of the wolves sniffed the ground, then snapped at the other wolf who got too close to it. The wolf returned to sniffing the ground, a single paw stepping into the classroom as it took rapid, short snuffs, the other wolf sniffing the air.

Birdie pulled back behind the desk, placing both hands over her mouth and praying to Merlin that the wolves couldn't hear her racing heart. It was so loud in her ears; she was sure there was no way the wolves' sensitive hearing was not picking up on it. Slowly, she set her wand down and reached into her bag and unzipped the first pocket, slowly pulling out the vial of diluted bleach. She uncorked it and waved it around, hoping it would be enough to throw the wolves' scent off before they discovered her hiding place. She corked the vial and set it down in front of her.

The snuffs grew louder, and a chair was thrown to the ground as a wolf jumped on a table, sniffing the air in the room.

Birdie closed her eyes and put a hand over her wand. She swore she felt a breath on her back, and it sent a shiver down her spine.

Birdie opened her eyes when it was quiet for a second too long. As she moved to glance around the desk, she came face to face with a notched ear wolf.

She didn't even have a chance to scream as it lunged for her. She fell over, sending off stunning spell that grazed the wolf's fur. Her thud as she hit the floor caught the attention of the other wolf, who swung his head in her direction. He snarled, his fur bristling.

He jumped off the table he was on and ran for Birdie while the other wolf continued stalking toward her. Birdie back crawled away from the two wolves who forced her into a corner of the room. Her back hit the wall. Her hand holding her wand twitched to pick it up, but the wolves flattened their ears and snarled at the movement.

Birdie hesitated. One wrong move and they would pounce before she could utter a single spell.

The two wolves took a step closer when a vial was violently thrown in front of them, bouncing as it hit the floor and spilled its contents in front of them. The two wolves sneezed while Agrippa let out a hiss at them from the table she stood on.

"Incendio!" Birdie shouted, standing up quickly and pointing her wand at the wolves.

A jet of flames ignited from her wand, holding steady like a torch as it searched for something to ignite, reaching out randomly.

Whimpering and snarling as they backed away, the wolves did not run away easily. They snapped at the flame. They retreated a few steps when they felt the fire lick their fur. Birdie kept backing them away out of the room and into another room across the hall, keeping the flame in front of the bristling wolves. Once they were in the room across the hall, she slammed the door shut and locked it with every locking charm she knew while they jumped and growl-barked at the door, scratching and digging at it.

Birdie swallowed several deep breaths as she leaned against the wall adjacent to the wolves she trapped. Agrippa purred and rubbed against her owner's legs.

"Thanks for the distraction, girl," Birdie said to Agrippa, stroking a hand down her back.

At that moment, a loud howl broke through the thick wooden door.

A second howl followed.

For a moment, her breath caught in her throat.

"Agrippa," Birdie whispered, "run."

With that, Birdie took off down the hall, Agrippa at her heels. She could hear the communicating grunts and growls of the wolves responding to the howls. She turned a corner and nearly collided with a wolf that leaped for her.

She slipped and the wolf missed and slid into the wall, giving Birdie a chance to stand back up and run in the direction she originally came, and she ran up the shifting stairway to a new level, two wolves following behind her.

At the top of the stairway, another wolf paused and snarled down at Birdie, who quickly jumped to a revolving stairway moving away from the one she was on. She landed roughly, twisting her ankle underneath her. She held back a yelp and bit through the pain as she straightened herself and ran up the stairway, the three wolves running down the steps and to the platform that led to the bottom of the staircase she was on.

A couple more wolves joined the three, and they trotted up the stairs after Birdie.

"Agrippa, we need an escape!" Birdie shouted as she ran down the sixth-floor hallway with the five wolves chasing after her.

As she came near a pillar, she pointed her wand at it.

"Bombarda!" Birdie said.

The spell struck the center of the pillar, blowing out chunks as Birdie and Agrippa ran by it. The pillar crumbled and fell in the next second, crushing one of the wolves. Two hesitated with tucked tails, whining and sniffing at the crumbled rock. The other two jumped over the rubble and pursued the hunt.

"Okay, now there's only two of them," Birdie told Agrippa after a quick glance back.

The last word had hardly left her mouth when two wolves leaped out of a classroom at her left, their snapping jaws barely missing her ankles.

"Damn it!" Birdie shouted.

With four wolves at her heels, Birdie looked around for an escape, anything to get the wolves off her trail. This section of Hogwarts looked decimated, and many plants had grown into and eaten away the walls of the neglected, old castle. Ivy crawled up the pillars while other plants broke through where the ivy had managed to crack walls. Even in the dark, she could see that lily-like plants were growing near the ivy. Birdie would say someone had purposely planted the lilies there. She recognized the plant as asphodel. She veered toward a pillar and snatched a handful of the plant as she ran by. She only managed a couple stalks, but she crumbled the plant in her hand as she looked around.

She led Agrippa up a stairway. She stopped halfway and threw the crumbled flower at the nearest wolf. It yelped as the plant struck its eyes, falling backward and rolling into the wolves behind it, knocking them down the steps.

Birdie plucked Agrippa off the stairs and jumped for a thick ivy plant hanging from the ceiling and stretching down to the third floor of Hogwarts.

Her hand grabbed hold of the plant as teeth sank into her shoe.

Birdie screamed.

A wolf had jumped and snatched her by her shoe, hanging in the air while Birdie struggled to hold on. Agrippa hissed at the wolf.

With a couple thrashes, Birdie and the wolf fell to the third floor below.

Birdie struck the ground hard, and it knocked the wind out of her. The wolf was thrown off her in the fall, but it shook itself off and lunged for Birdie once more, grabbing her shoe and dragging her toward the stairway, ignoring the kneazle clawing and biting at its face. It nipped once at Agrippa before proceeding to drag a semi-conscious Birdie toward the stairway.

Birdie could hear the other wolves padding their way toward her. Her vision spun and she could feel herself being moved, yet her brain would not react; it only throbbed. She had a feeling this would be her last moment of life.

In her swirling vision, she saw a blur of movement soar above her, then heard a loud cry. She glanced down with her eyes, and her vision finally started clearing away and she saw a green cloaked figure driving a bladed staff into the wolf's chest. The other wolves were at the top of the stairway that would lead straight to Birdie, but they paused and stared down at the figure with snarls on their lips as they watched the impaled wolf draw its last breath.

The figure removed its bladed staff and stared back at the wolves.

With several angry gruffs and defeated huffs, the wolves turned back up the stairway, howling as they disappeared in search of more wandering prey.

Birdie slowly pushed herself up and held her head in her hands.

Suddenly, her head was forced back by a hand grabbing her hair and a small flicker of fire blinded her for a brief minute, and she closed her eyes slowly before her hair was released and her head dropped against her chest. She felt her savior yanking off her shoe and then her sock and watched distantly as her foot was inspected.

"No broken skin," a female voice spoke in a bored voice. "I guess you'll live. Lucky you."

Finally, her head cleared, but the pain lingered as a dull throb in the back of her head. She rubbed it some. Agrippa purred up at her and nuzzled her cheek. Birdie gave her a few pets.

"You're welcome," the girl said again as she sheathed the blade portion of her staff.

"Thank you," Birdie said belatedly.

The girl in the dark green cloak didn't even acknowledge her words. Instead, she walked over to the deceased wolf and sat down next to it, lifting its head into her lap. She grabbed an ear and looked at the pinna intently.

"What are you doing?" Birdie asked.

"Seeing which house this wolf was in," the girl said. She turned the ear enough so Birdie could see, snapping her fingers to create a fire once more.

Birdie's eyes widened as she saw a small badger tattooed in the wolf's ear. Agrippa glanced up at her then back at the wolf.

"What is that?" she asked. "What does that mean? What do you mean which house?"

"Some of these wolves were originally students, you know," the girl said. "Students who managed to escape a wolf attack, but not unscathed. They are then captured later, usually at the next full moon, and claimed by Pure Magic."

"Oh my." Birdie covered her mouth, tears welling in her eyes. "That was a student? And you just killed him."

"I saved your life," the girl reminded. She slowly used her fingers to close the wolf's eyes. "It was self-defense. Besides, everyone suffers at the hands of Pure Magic. This was merciful."

Birdie didn't know if she should agree or not, but she was glad she had not been eaten or worse, turned into a werewolf herself. She supposed she could understand the girl's reasoning, but it was a hard pill to swallow. What on earth did this girl have to endure on her own in this death trap of a castle? She slid her sock and shoe back on and slowly stood up, picking up Agrippa with her, the cat nuzzling against her neck comfortingly.

"Thank you again," Birdie said. "I meant no disrespect. I have no clue what has happened here since I hid in my tower."

The girl had not even lowered the hood of her cloak. The green cloak was the only splash of color on her, and even that seemed to blend in with the shadows. Her dark garments and black knee-high boots seemed to blend her into the night, making it hard to see her figure in the darkness. She cradled the wolf a moment longer before gently laying the dog's head down and standing up herself.

"I can tell," the girl said. "Even for a pureblood, you don't know much of what's been going on in the world, do you? Not keeping up on your politics, eh?"

"How did you know I was pureblood?"

Finally, the girl yanked her hood down, revealing short blonde hair and eyes hidden behind what looked like sunglasses. She pulled off the sunglasses and held them out, her blue eyes glistening like her hair in the moonlight.

"Found these after the attack," the girl said. "They are what Pure Magic used when they first attacked Hogwarts to differentiate between purebloods, halfbloods, and muggleborns. They tell you everyone's name and blood status with a special identification charm. Here. See for yourself."

Birdie slowly accepted the glasses. She stared down at them, tilting them back and forth curiously. A memory struck her, one of herself running from a Death Eater who had been wearig one of these glasses. That explained a lot, but she wondered what it's true purpose was if Pure Magic still seemed to kill despite blood status. She was picking up hints of red and orange off the thick spectacles. She slid the glasses on, and immediately the name "Kevin Whitby" appeared as her eyes locked on the wolf lying on the ground, and a second later, the word "Muggleborn" appeared under his name.

"I remember him," Birdie said. "He was just a third year."

"Yes," the blonde agreed.

Birdie looked up at the girl. The name changed to "Sadie Baldock" and words seemed to stutter and blur under her name for a second before the word "Pureblood" appeared.

"I remember you," Birdie whispered. "You're a Slytherin in my year."

"Yes," the blonde agreed once more, crossing her arms.

Birdie frowned as she slid the glasses off her face. She shook her head as she said, "I didn't know you were a pureblood."

"As if that's what really matters here," Sadie said, taking the glasses back from Birdie. "What are you doing out on the night of a full moon? You should know better. You're causing an uproar."

"What are you doing out here?" Birdie retorted, refusing to answer the question that made her sound like an idiot.

"Saving you, obviously. Can't have my hideout blown because of an amateur."

"Those wolves," Birdie said, changing the subject. "They seemed to know you. They turned away as soon as you killed one of their own. They didn't go after you like they did me when I did the same thing."

"We've had several encounters," Sadie said, lifting her hood and walking down up the stairs.

Birdie blinked for a moment before setting Agrippa down and walking after Sadie.

"Where are you going?" Birdie asked.

"Back to my hideout to enjoy my night in peace."

"Please, let me stay with you," Birdie said. "Just for tonight."

"No."

"Why not? I'm not going to last long out here, I've no clue what I'm doing and it's dark—I can't see to make heads or tails of anything."

"Sounds like a you problem."

"What is with your attitude?" Birdie snapped. "Would it kill you to let me stay in your so-called hideout for one night?"

Birdie was not prepared when Sadie spun abruptly, her head inches from Birdie's face. The hood was up and her glasses were on, but she could feel the other girl's cold stare boring into her. She took a step back.

"I am a Slytherin," Sadie said, "and therefore, you do not trust me. I cannot be relied on, depended on, or seen as a safe place for you, Ravenclaw, and I suggest you find yourself a Gryffindor to hide behind, because I will just as quickly use you as a shield for my own protection if the need arises. Now, leave."

"How many times have you spoken those words and chased people off?" Birdie asked. "It won't work on me. I need a safe place tonight and you're taking me to yours. It's one night. Please. You wouldn't save someone if you didn't care the slightest bit, so care a little more, and let me stay one night. When its daylight and no longer a full moon, I'll be out of your hair. One night."

Sadie sighed loudly. She turned away and walked with purpose. Birdie hesitated, then quickly followed Sadie, looking around nervously while Agrippa stayed at her heels.

It took hardly three minutes to arrive at Sadie's "hideout." It required climbing up a thick vine of ivy, and Birdie settled Agrippa on her shoulders and climbed after Sadie. They arrived to a destroyed section of the ceiling. The rock had crumbled around the area, forming a cave-like area smaller than a full-sized bed. There were several objects surrounding a blanket in the middle of the area, like lanterns, books, vials of potions, and odd shaped items Birdie couldn't get a good look at in the dark. She paused, kneeled at the entrance of the hideout.

"Get in here," Sadie demanded. She pointed at the blanket. "Sleep. We'll take turns keeping watch. I'll go first."

"Are you just making sure I won't throw you out in your sleep?" Birdie asked, though she had no bite in her tone. She was tired after her night, and sleep was a welcoming thought.

"Precisely," Sadie said as she settled herself at the entrance of the hideout, leaning her back against the wall and letting a leg dangle while she pulled the other one up to her chest. Her staff rested at her side.

Birdie decided not to comment as she laid down on the blanket. Agrippa curled up next to her, purring all the while. Birdie glanced at Sadie, who refused to look in any other direction but out into Hogwarts castle. Exhaustion hit Birdie hard, and despite the thousands of questions on her tongue, Birdie's eyes closed, and she fell into a deep sleep.