The misfit three sprinted into the forest as night fell entirely around them.

Alice continued to run in the lead, Zander hot on her tail with Tobias behind them both. Quickly growing frustrated—Zander managed to quicken his pace, finally grabbing hold of Alice's robe and jerking her to a skidding stop.

"Wait—a—second!" Zander panted, gripping her sleeve viselike. "Do you have any idea what you're trying to do right now?!"

Alice shot him a conflicted glare, Tobias staggering to a stop just behind them.

The three stood in the cold night air, their breaths just visible with every exhalation as they hesitated in the clearing amidst the darkened trees.

Zander's eyes began to scope along the area, as did Alice's and Tobias's, every sense seeming to sharpen, all of them hearing the faintest gusts of wind and the softest rustles of leaves along the treetops above.

Tobias took in a breath and stepped away, squinting into the dark woodlands before him and preparing to call out. "Professor Crowley! Heeey! Prof—"

"Shhhh!" Zander jerked around and planted a hand firmly onto Tobias's mouth. "Don't yell out here! Hush!"

"Oh… come off it," Alice sighed. "Hagrid's brought us out here for lessons plenty of times, and nothing's ever happened before."

"Yes, well—we've never ventured into the forest alone at night before, either," Zander retorted. "And certainly not while an Azkaban prisoner is on the loose."

"We're not that deep into the forest, and the sun only just went down," Alice mumbled.

"It doesn't matter," Zander stated, facing her. "We're running out here alone and yelling into a forest full of magical creatures—"

"How else are we gonna find Crowley?!"

"We look for him! We don't yell—we look! We have eyes!"

"Fine—!"

"I found him," Tobias exhaled in a fading sort of whisper, gazing deeper into the trees and standing a few feet away from the other two.

Zander and Alice both turned, staring at Tobias from behind and following his general line of sight. The two moved slowly forward, stopping on either of Tobias's sides—and all three stared at the very same thing, their eyes fixating on the figure lying on the ground far ahead of them.

Crowley lay on his back amid the many autumn leaves, his hand resting on his stomach and his mouth slightly agape, eyes closed, looking as if he was simply asleep.

Alice broke into a brisk stride toward him, and she hit her knees by his side, surveying Crowley up and down. Zander and Tobias stopped on the professor's other side and gazed down at him, both wearing the same perturbed visage.

"He's breathing," Alice said, staring down at the hand on his stomach, which gave a gentle rise and fall with the professor's every breath. "And he's not hurt or anything…"

"He just looks tired," Zander observed. "Well—wake him. Give him the medicine. Come on."

Alice gave Crowley a few light taps on either cheek, trying to stir him—and Tobias's eyes narrowed intently down at the professor, appearing to be deep in thought.

"Zander," Tobias said, still staring at Crowley. "Vhy are his eyes two different colors? Does he vear contact lenses?"

Zander blinked and turned his head, shooting him a befuddled look. "What kind of question is that right now?"

"I just wonder," Tobias remarked, seeming to study every inch of Crowley's pale, ghostly face. "If… he may be hiding somezing. Like… ze unnatural eye color… that one might have if they were a—"

"Professor!" Alice gasped, smiling and seeing Crowley's eyes begin to flutter. "Oy—can ya' hear me? Listen—Arius gave us medicine for you! Here! C'mon! C'mon…!"

She unscrewed the lid of the flask, sliding a hand beneath Crowley's head and preparing to feed him the serum—just when the snap of a twig caught their ears.

Zander and Tobias both turned—spotting another figure approaching from the trees in the distance, cloaked and shrouded in the shadows of night.

Alice glanced up, feeling her heart make a painful jolt—but she stayed put beside Crowley and didn't move an inch, freezing solid and watching the figure in fear.

It strode easefully toward them with a presence most ominous—and the closer it treaded, the more apparent its whimsical walk became, slanted and swinging, arms waving to and fro, and the gentle, mild hum of a song seemed to echo from him, more and more as he drew steadily near.

"Way, haaay, roll-and-go…!" he sang, releasing breathless and cackling laughter in between. "The anchor's on board, and the cables are stored… to be rollickin' randy, dandy, oh…!"

Tobias moved to raise his wand—just when Zander's hand snapped around his wrist.

Zander then looked over—meeting Tobias's eyes with a severe sort of look, making a gentle shake of the head and motioning subtly down to Crowley.

Tobias seemed to understand, reluctantly withdrawing and kneeling across from Alice, gesturing for her to hurry in feeding Crowley his medicine.

Zander took a step forward, standing between his friends and the approaching stranger.

"Ohohohoho—lookit this, lookit this!" the stranger chortled, cocking his head rather dramatically, a head of stringy brown hairs fashioned into a wildly messy fohawk. "What happens in cat and mouse if the cat is keeling over? And what happens in cat and mouse if the cat has a great big gang of stupid kittens following it into a bear trap? WA-BAM!"

He swung both arms through the air and smashed his hands together, miming what appeared to be a giant bear trap springing shut.

Zander—despite a growing anxiety rising up inside at light-speed—maintained his composure entirely, his eyes narrowing at the insane stranger and suddenly recognizing him from his picture in the Daily Prophet.

"Valefor," he said.

"Ding-ding-ding-ding-ding!" Valefor chanted, his wild brown eyes glistening madly in the light of the moon. "Hahahahahaha—oh, and here we are, then! Finally, finally, finally! All these nights and all these games—all this bloody time trying to lure the cat from his home—just to have all its kittens trail about in its wake!"

"Crowley," Alice breathed shakily, holding his head upright and silently pleading for him to awaken, pressing the flask to his mouth. "C'mon… c'mon… please…"

"Ohhh—but what's a'matter?" Valefor mocked, lunging over and tilting his head at Crowley in a falsely worrisome way. "Has the poor widdle professor had himself a stroke? Aww… he doesn't look so good, now does he?!"

"Oy." Zander reached over, snapping his fingers and gathering Valefor's attention again. "Look at me, not them."

Valefor straightened up, raising his brows and scoffing out an astonished little laugh. "Ohhh—how brave, this one! How brave!"

Zander fell expressionless, merely glaring at the man and showing no hint of the steadily rising fear inside.

"But I imagine—I imagine," Valefor hissed in a throaty rasp, making a wide step forward and ogling Zander with a wild, predatory stare. "That you'll not be so brave in the face of me, little boy. Because I imagine—of all the monsters you might expect to meet out here—I'm the worst one you could've found. HA!"

He jolted forward with his bellowing laugh, nearly making Zander jump, though he just managed not to.

"And I imagine… that the Seal of Shadows must be quite desperate if they're relying on you," Zander rumbled. "Seeing as how you're mad beyond all functionality."

Valefor's eyes gave another petrifying sparkle, his insane smile fading, leering into Zander like a predator to its prey.

"I would think a man working with any elite team of revolutionaries might recognize a useful opportunity when he sees one," Zander explained, giving him an intrigued little squint and gently flicking the edge of his Slytherin scarf. "You're looking at someone who may prove to be useful to you."

Alice and Tobias's heads both shot up, ogling Zander from behind as if they'd never seen anything quite like him before.

Zander remained still and unreadable.

And Valefor—inching gently closer—surveyed the Slytherin scarf with interest, a wide, toothy smile crawling across his face yet again.

"Oooooh… you're the McAllister boy," Valefor exhaled, turning and smirking at Alice. "And that makes you the O'Heidin girl. Ohhh… don't you know you've both been marked already?"

"Marked? As what?" Zander asked, forcing down another wave of rampant nervousness. "As targets to kill…?"

"Aaaah… now that remains to be seen," Valefor grinned strangely, tilting his head again and gently pressing his fingertips together. "Oh, but you could be a great, great addition to us. Such a good Slytherin prodigy, you are…"

"That so," Zander uttered tonelessly. "Well—then I see no reason to put off the initiation."

Valefor's animalistic smile seemed to grow even more, his eyes lighting up as if he'd just won the lottery.

Tobias continued to stare at Zander in bewilderment—but Alice, however, did not. She looked away, suddenly understanding Zander's intentions and returning her full attention to Crowley, tipping the flask just a bit more against his mouth.

"So quick to seize opportunity and power," Valefor breathed with delight. "Oh, I so love Slytherins, I do!"

"Tell me," Zander requested. "What will you have me do?"

Valefor remained standing at an odd angle, head cocked to the side, fingertips held together, and his face painted with a bizarre, mysterious glee.

"What… do you know," he said wispily. "Of the Founders' Fortunes?"

Zander blinked, thinking for a second. "I know… that the sword of Gryffindor is one of them, and the Diadem of Ravenclaw was another… before it was destroyed in the second war."

"Yesss… and haven't you ever wondered," Valefor sneered, sauntering an inch closer. "What the prized possessions were… for Hufflepuff… or Slytherin?"

Zander stared, choosing not to reply.

Crowley's mouth barely opened, allowing Alice to finally administer some of the iron-scented liquid to him.

Valefor flashed another smirk, holding up a finger and wearing a knowing expression. "History knows and history doesn't care. The Sword of Godric Gryffindor is regarded like a hero—as if the bloody blade by itself had waged and won wars all its own—but the other three held great importance, and none more so than Salazar Slytherin's own."

"That's what you want from the castle," Zander realized. "Slytherin's equivalent to the Sword of Godric Gryffindor."

"Yes—and do you know what that is?" Valefor grinned. "Twice the power and thrice the magic! Forged in much the same manner as Godric's own sword—but imprinted with the heart of Leviathan!"

Crowley caught a whiff of the liquid in the flask, his eyes fluttering more—then his arm suddenly shot up, grasping the flask tightly and beginning to drink it in several rapid chugs.

Valefor's eyes flickered over to the side, spotting Crowley's sudden movement on the ground. Then, his smile faded, and he let out a disappointed sigh, shaking his head at Zander as if he was a child who'd misbehaved.

"Oh… now that's not very nice," Valefor complained. "Just stalling me so you could rouse your teacher. And here I thought you actually had some promise for Lord Xyler. Yet another waste."

Then at once—Valefor whipped out his wand and—

"Bom-BARDA!"

The spell bellowed not from Vaalefor—but from Crowley, suddenly on his feet and jutting out a hand with a great blast of light—shooting the spell past the students and sending the dark wizard flying off of his feet.

Valefor soared backward through the air and tumbled hard over the leafy terrain, rolling over the ground and smashing into a tree.

Crowley wiped a spot of blood from his mouth with his thumb, planting himself firmly between the students and the madman, teeth and fangs bared, exhaling a low, growling sort of noise as he prepared to fight further.

But Valefor had no desire to do so; he leaped upright and vanished into the darkness of the trees, dissipating like a shadow without a moment to spare.

There was a long, tense silence following the dark wizard's departure.

Then, Professor Crowley—panting slightly, still pale and sickly, and looking more primal than anyone had ever seen him before—slowly turned to his three students, meeting their eyes and releasing a deep cloud of breath.

"Castle," he rasped. "Let's go."

Inside the headmaster's office, nothing stirred for a while.

Arius lay sprawled on his back over his desk, an arm draped over his head as his consciousness repeatedly attempted to abandon him, suffering through a migraine still feeling incredibly drained.

Zeus, the tiny blue dragon, flew onto his perch and spared yet another look to his master. And, on either of the massive walls surrounding—Albus Dumbledore's portrait was fast asleep, and Severus Snape's was standing with its arms folded, glaring down at the sleepy Arius without saying a word.

"Aaah!" Zeus squeaked, perking its head and seeming suddenly transfixed by the door across the room. "Aaaah!"

"Nooo," Arius moaned into his sleeve, sealing his eyes shut. "Pleeease… be quiet…"

"Aaaah!" Zeus squawked harder.

"Aaaah," Arius mocked him, covering his face more and groaning into his arm.

Seconds later, the doors shifted and opened rather loudly, four people entering the room. The door swung shut behind them, and the sound of it made another sharp pain penetrate Arius's skull, making him wince and swallow a curse.

Reluctantly, he rolled his head to the side, squinting through the lighting of his office and surveying the people who'd arrived.

Crowley stood before three students—his cloak still spotted with bits of dirt and dead leaves, his posture slightly hunched and his visage paler than ever, a tiny trickle of blood stained onto his chin from his mouth, his expression gaunt and disturbed. Alice, Zander, and Tobias stood just behind him, all of them staring at the ground in silence.

Arius slowly raised his head, pushing himself upright and trying his best to ignore how he felt, as something more immediate demanded his attention now.

"What happened?" he asked, sliding off his desk.

"You happened," Crowley rumbled, striding across the room and rounding on him. "You raving bloody lunatic!"

"Trocar," Arius breathed, sparing the students a brief glance. "Language!"

"You—cannot send—students—after me," Crowley stated in a loud, clear voice, jabbing his finger to Arius's chest with every word. "When I'm trying—to catch—a killer—from Azkaban!"

Arius paused, momentarily falling speechless and giving him a questioning look.

"Yeah. He's here," Crowley affirmed with a nod, tossing up a hand. "Valefor's right outside the grounds—and he nearly killed these three!"

"I couldn't have known that at the time, Trocar," Arius argued, his tone falling serious. "I was a bit more preoccupied with managing the preventable death of my Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."

Crowley tried to retort, opening his mouth twice and looking as if he wanted to say several things at once. He fidgeted in frustration for a moment—then suddenly fell still, examining Arius rather closely, as if he'd only just realized something.

"What's wrong with you?" Crowley whisper-yelled.

"Nothing," Arius uttered, wincing and reaching for his head. "Headache."

"You—I told you not to do that," Crowley growled, looming even closer and glaring daggers into him. "You're running this godforsaken school while there's a killer on the loose—you can't afford to hinder yourself now!"

"Evidently I can," Arius replied, managing a whimsical half-smile.

"Damn you—Emmett Orion Arius—God damn you," Crowley glowered, cocking his head and flashing a hint of his fangs. "I have told you—time and time again—I don't want you putting your life on the line for—"

"What? For you?" Arius challenged, tilting his head with a caustic visage. "Tough."

The two shared a long, heated stare—Zander, Alice, and Tobias watching quietly and uncomfortably from the sidelines.

"Now… you… take your weird eyes," Arius exhaled in a strangely unsettling voice, gently raising a finger and pointing over to the door. "And get out of my office."

Crowley glared furiously into him, hands balling into fists as his pale face seemed to darken red.

Arius cocked his brow at him. "Do you not intend to contact your old auror friends and tell them what's transpired here? Is that not your job here?"

Crowley stared, fuming, saying nothing.

"Go," Arius said with simple finality. "Now."

With a final glare, Crowley turned on his heel and marched briskly out of the office, storming past the students and vanishing from their sight—slamming the doors hard behind him.

An awkward silence lingered on the air after his departure.

Alice glanced between Zander and Tobias, then took a step forward.

"Sir… is… is Professor Crowley…?"

"He's a vampire," Arius sighed, lumbering back onto his desk and slowly outstretching on top of it. "Yes. And that has been a closely-guarded secret for a very long time… so I'd appreciate it if you three helped me to keep it that way."

"Right… we will," Alice agreed.

There was another pause.

Zander slid his hands into his robe, moving forward and eyeing the headmaster with intrigue.

"You gave him your blood," he muttered.

Arius turned his head atop the desk, raising his brows drearily at him.

"That's why you're so… tired," Zander realized.

"Zat is what was in the flask," Tobias mumbled. "Oh… and it was a big flask, too…"

"Sir—I think I should tell you, by the way," Zander recalled. "When we were in the forest, and Valefor arrived—I tried my best to stall him, and he said he was after one of the Founders' Fortunes. Whatever Salazar's equivalent was to the Sword of Gryffindor. That's why he's targeting the castle. I think he wanted me to get it for him."

Everyone went quiet for a second, all of their eyes on Zander.

"Really," Arius exhaled. "Why would you think that?"

"Well…" Zander mumbled with a shrug. "Because I… basically… offered to."

Arius stared at him curiously.

"It seemed to work," Zander added. "It bought just enough time for Professor Crowley to get on his feet, and it did give us a bit of information, too."

"Yes… so it did. Very good," Arius replied with a nod. "Now… you two may go. I need to speak to Alice alone, please."

The three students took slightly back, trading odd looks with one another.

Tobias then sighed, turning away to leave.

Zander hesitated, leaning over to Alice and whispering to her. "I'll meet you in the common room later."

Alice squinted at him. "In the Slytherin—?"

"No," Zander stated. "Our room."

At that, he and Tobias walked off, striding across the room and disappearing out the doors.

Alice gazed at the doors for several seconds after they left, sighing heavily.

"Slytherpuff," Arius breathed, releasing a faint little laugh.

Alice blinked, wheeling around and giving her headmaster a double-take, thinking she must have misheard him.

"Oh… you are truly special, you know that?" Arius smirked, turning his head and staring up at her. "The last time that room appeared here… was when Trocar and I were students here."

Alice stared, suddenly stunned to silence. She had no clue anyone else knew about the Slytherpuff room—especially the headmaster.

"Alice," Arius said in a low, softened voice. "Do you know why you and Zander are as close as you are?"

Alice said nothing, simply shaking her head at him.

"Because… it just… works," Arius smirked with a wink. "The cunning nature of a Slytherin works as a perfect protector for the trusting Hufflepuff… and the loyal and nonjudgmental nature of a Hufflepuff works as a perfect caretaker for the average Slytherin. And that… that powerful little chemistry between the two… is why the Slytherpuff room exists."

Alice nodded quietly.

"It is also why… people like Trocar and Zander always have such, such potential," Arius explained. "Because… if you take the ruthlessness and the cunning brilliance of a Slytherin, and you remove any temptations of dark magic, or indifference, or seeking only self-gratification… then they are the best, the absolute best ally you could ever have. And… when a Slytherin has a Hufflepuff by their side… that is generally what they become. They become the best of what they can be… and all that cunning is aimed at a goal that is good."

Alice stared at him, pondering silently on everything he said.

"Granted, I'm just speaking from my own experiences… but still," Arius mumbled, stifling a yawn. "It certainly seems that way to me…"

Alice paused, giving him a questioning look. "Why…?"

"Why am I telling you all this? Well… it's simple," Arius said, his tone softening even more, his stare seeming to glisten in a manner most profound. "Understand me when I say… that I do not believe Zander will stray away from good. But, Alice… if that scenario ever does present itself, then it's very important… that you remain as close to him as you are."

Alice hesitated, allowing this to sink in, then shaking her head. "Zander wouldn't—"

"Zander alone wouldn't stray away from good," Arius stated, raising his hand. "But you'd be surprised how a person might change when pressure is put onto them from someone else. And… if he ever gets pressured to stray away… then your friendship with him will be key in keeping him where he is now."

"I don't… why would he get pressured by someone else?" Alice wondered, totally confused. "Nobody could pressure him into being bad."

Arius gazed thoughtfully up at the high ceiling, releasing a somber cloud of breath.

"Someone could," he sighed.

"Zander wouldn't listen," Alice insisted. "He just proved that tonight—"

"No… Alice, don't misunderstand," Arius told her. "I'm not saying Zander would ever willingly become evil. I'm saying… given the right pressure, from the right person… he may become convinced that a bad way is actually a good way. And, through that confusion… he could be led astray. In fact, that's true for all people, not just Slytherins… not even just wizards in general…"

"Why do you think that's gonna happen to him?" Alice asked.

"Well… I'm not sure if it will or not," Arius mumbled at the ceiling, appearing to be a million miles away. "Here's hoping it won't… but it happened to Trocar once before."

"What?" Alice breathed. "How…?"

"Oh, that was… a long time ago," Arius muttered. "Back in his auror days. One of his targets convinced him that he was part of a vampire coalition that sought to establish peaceful terms with the rest of wizard kind. When Trocar went out to meet them… well… you can imagine what happened after."

Alice frowned, falling silent again.

"The great common ground between the Hufflepuffs and the Slytherins is that they're both usually open-minded about many things. But… that's also a dangerous way to be," Arius pondered aloud. "Trocar briefly considered that a peaceful resolution with vampires was possible. And, because of that… they got the jump on him… nearly killed him… and effectively ended his auror career. It's quite unfair, really…"

He let out another sigh.

"But… that is the reason that a Slytherin must always keep their open mind in check," Arius concluded. "In fact… us Hufflepuffs could stand to do that a little more, too. It's not bad to be accepting… but it's foolish to succumb to acceptance without thought."

Alice nodded in agreement, thinking of nothing to say.

"Point is," Arius said, turning and meeting her eyes once more. "There may come a time when Zander is at a crossroad. And… I'm just hoping that you being there may urge him in the right direction. That's all."

Alice grimaced. "You don't think he's gonna end up at a crossroad just because he's a Slytherin, do you…?"

Arius scoffed out a laugh, shaking his head. "Do you think me so prejudiced, Alice? I wouldn't drain half the blood in my body for a Slytherin if I thought in such a way, now would I? Not unless I was a madman. But, well, the verdict's still out on that…"

Alice snickered in response.

"All right, well… I'll be writing your father fairly soon, and I'll be sure to tell him of you and your friends' heroic actions tonight," Arius told her. "And, I never said… thank you for that, Alice. You didn't have to follow him into the forbidden forest. That was a wildly dangerous thing to do."

Alice smirked. "Then I reckon being reckless for the sake of a Slytherin is something we both have in common."

"And I reckon no one will mind ten extra points appearing for Hufflepuff house overnight as a reward for those heroic and wildly reckless actions," Arius replied curtly. "But—don't ever do that again."

"Aye… I won't."

"All right… you can go now. Goodnight, Alice."

"Goodnight, Headmaster."

Alice waved at him, then turned and marched out of the office for the night.

Throughout the long and silent walk through the castle, she pondered, dwelled, replayed everything the headmaster said—and the longer she did, the more troubled she became.

She could never imagine a scenario wherein Zander would stray away from good.

But—as she mulled over Arius's words, and silently analyzed each and every one—she slowly came to a newer conclusion.

It almost sounded as if Arius was worried about something specific, a very particular person or a very precise situation that he foresaw arising sometime in the future. It wasn't that Zander was predisposed to being bad—not at all—more than anything, it simply seemed that Arius thought a specific situation may play out sometime later on, one that would seek to pull Zander away.

But what that situation was, who it involved, or why it would ever arrive—Alice couldn't know in the slightest.

So, she simply shook the thoughts away for now, joining Zander in the Slytherpuff room and dismissing any further ideas on the matter.