Aileen trudged along behind Cassandra, emotionless. She felt like an empty shell, devoid of any feelings or thoughts. Whatever would happen would happen. It was as if all strength and will-power had been drained out of her. Aileen was sure they would be punishing her. . .and then she would probably be sent to an orphanage. . .she couldn't think of anyone who would bother with her - a disturbed, possibly dangerous teenage girl. . .not really something anyone would want in their house.

After climbing several sets of stairs and passing through numerous corridors, Cassandra finally led Aileen into a small office. Aileen started feeling somewhat uncomfortable, remembering the reason she had last been in an office. . .not very long ago. But she soon realized that this was as different from the principal's office as could be. Everything was colorful and the whole room was filled with light that came in through several large windows framed by translucent white curtains. In a corner stood a large desk, covered with papers. In front of it were two skyblue, comfortable-looking chairs. On the opposite wall, left to the door, there were numerous file-cabinets and a few bookshelves. On the other side of the room there was a blue couch facing a glass coffee-table. The walls were decorated with photos of landscapes, people and animals; all of which were moving.

Cassandra had been patiently waiting for Aileen to finish her observation of the office, and seeing that Aileen was calming down motioned towards the couch. Showing no sign of emotion, Aileen did as she was told and sat down.

"Are you hungry or thirsty, dear?" Cassandra asked in a motherly fashion.

"Yes" Aileen replied in an impartial voice.

Cassandra waved her wand and a bowl of fruit and some pumpkin juice appeared on the coffee table.

"Is this alright?" she asked, wanting to make Aileen as comfortable as possible before they started talking.

Aileen just nodded, unable to reply since she was already munching on an apple. "Thank You." she finally said, her mouth still half full.

"Oh, it's nothing my dear" Cassandra replied, "I'm sure you must have been hungry. Is there anything else you need?"

"Well. . ." Aileen started, suddenly overwhelmed, "it's just that all my things are still at my grandmother's house. . .and I think they're emptying it tomorrow. And the cat. . .there's nobody there to feed the cat. . .I have to go take care fo him. . ." Aileen had become more and more agitated as she talked to Cassandra. She jumped up, wanting to go to the door, but Cassandra stopped her.

"There, there, sweetie. It would do you no good to run away, we're miles away from your home. Hush, it's alright, I'll take care of it. We'll transfer all the things in your grandmother's house to a storehouse and then you can go through them later. And I'll get someone to bring your cat here." Cassandra said, quelling any further emotional outbursts. "Even though animals are not really allowed in here. . .but I'm sure we can bend the rule a bit . . ." she added in a low whisper, smiling mischeviously.

With a grateful look at Cassandra, Aileen settled back down.

"Do you know whether I can have my wand back?" she asked next, feeling unprotected without it.

Cassandra looked at her, surprised that she was thinking of that now - but then again it was probably a wizard's most important possession. "I'm not sure, but I'll ask and try to get it back to you as soon as possible. What kind of wand is it?"

"Ebony, dragon heartstring, 12 inches, flexible." Aileen replied unenthusiastically, having fallen back into her stupor.

Cassandra merely nodded, turned away to her desk, shuffled through some papers. She thought she knew what was going on in the girl's head. She had been through a lot during the past few days and it was therefore not surprising that she was rather unbalanced.

"I know it's still early but I'm sure you're tired. I don't presume that you've gotten a lot of sleep during the past few days." Cassandra finally said, turning back around.

With another wave of her wand, she conjured up a blanket and pillow. "You can sleep on the couch, I won't be needing my office for the rest of the afternoon."

Without another glance at Cassandra, Aileen lay down, wrapping the blanket around herself. She was soon fast asleep. Looking at her, Cassandra wondered about this strange girl, brought up away from other wizards but knowing all the time that they existed. . .It must have been hard on her, the poor girl. was Cassandras last thought before she left the room.

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