Chapter Twelve

Girls' Night Out

After Mandria and Rose got themselves benched, the three girls hurried down the stairs and through the main doors.

"We don't have all that long before curfew," Mandria panted as they hurried out. "I'd say our chances of Auror Potter coming out before then is pretty slim."

"I am going to be quite irate if he did leave without at least saying hello. He is my godfather, after all," Alex said.

"Yes, for you and six others, I believe. I'm sure he's quite busy, being who he is," Mandria pointed out.

"He's never been that busy," Alex said.

"Alex!" The three of them looked up to see Xavier coming forward and Rose groaned softly. He looked between them curiously before his eyes settled on Alex. "That was quite a match. Where are you off to this time of night?"

"Nowhere really, I'm just helping them with their Astronomy homework," Rose said. Xavier glanced up thoughtfully.

"Bit cloudy for that, isn't it?" Xavier said calmly, glancing up at the overcast sky. "Do you have a Devaporizing Telescope?"

"There, you see? I knew we were forgetting something! Let's run up and fetch it," Rose said grabbing their arms and pulling them inside.

"Why don't we just tell him what we were doing?" Alex said once they got inside.

"I don't trust him," Rose said.

"Me either, he might just be trying to get us into trouble," Mandria said.

"You two! He's been absolutely nothing but nice to us," Alex said with exasperation.

"Exactly, that's what worries me," Rose said.

"We might as well go to our rooms. We're not going to find him," Mandria said.

"And just who are we looking for, might I ask?" A man's voice asked from behind them. Nearly leaping out of her skin in surprise, Alex instinctively whipped around with her wand in hand. Alastor Moody's lip twitched slightly at the girl's movement, his good eye and magic eye both focusing in on her with obvious amusement. "Expecting trouble, are we?"

"I know you, you're M …er, you're Auror Moody, aren't you?" Mandria asked. Alastor's magic eye focused in on her, the other still watching Alex speculatively.

"Maybe I am," Alastor said calmly, "and maybe I'm only an impostor who's stolen his magic eye and taken his place. You never know. It's happened before. That would explain why a student might have a legitimate reason to pull a wand on a fully licensed Auror, wouldn't it?"

"I'm so terribly sorry, I was startled," Alex blushed, putting her wand back quickly as both eyes focused back in on her.

"You're the Snape girl, aren't you?" Alastor said, continuing if not expecting an answer. "Good reaction time. Bad hearing. Fast is good, Snape, but you need to learn how to recognize your target an instant quicker than you react."

"Yes, sir," Alex said sheepishly.

"What are you three doing prowling about these halls this time of night, anyhow?"

The other two girls had started improvising about taking walks and coming back from the library but Alex had a feeling that nothing but the truth was going to stick. There was something very scrutinizing about the way he was eyeballing them.

"Actually," Alex said, loud enough to stop the other two girls' hasty explanations. "We were looking for my godfather. I heard he was in the castle, and I just wanted to say hello."

"Just hello, eh?" Alastor repeated with a thin smile. "I'm afraid you've missed him then. He already went home for the night. But I'll be sure to let him know you were asking for him. I'm sure he'll drop by when he has time. You should be off getting to your rooms now. Less likely of you three getting in trouble when you're asleep, you know. Not impossible, of course, but less likely."

"Are you staying here?" Alex asked.

"Well, I suppose I could always walk over and have a chat with your parents," Alastor mused, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

"Goodnight Auror Moody," Mandria said. For once Alex didn't need to be nudged to follow along.

"Come on, I'll walk you to your rooms," Rose offered, putting an arm on Mandria's shoulder as the three hurried towards the main stairwell. Alastor chuckled softly, taking an old piece of parchment out from his robe. Watching it for a moment, he tucked it back in and went on his way.

The smell of withering leaves was heavy in the air and the unswept streets of Hogsmeade rustled below the feet of five witches, chatting softly as they walked towards the Three Broomsticks.

"Well, we're going to a pub, that at least is a good sign," Anna put in, the others chuckling at her.

"Rosmerta was kind enough to arrange a room for us… the presence of which doesn't exist as far as the male population is concerned," McGonagall said, looking at them from over her spectacles.

"No, of course not," Hermione said almost indignantly. "I am so glad we're doing this. I've only read about them myself, you know. I've never been to one."

"The only one I've ever been to was when I was a child and it was actually a pretend one," Danny said with a sigh. "Father set it up for his business clients just to get us girls out of the way."

"The last one I've been to was fourteen years ago, as a part of a graduation party for a girl I knew at Beauxbatons," Jennifer said. "It had been only the second one I'd been to ever, and the other was as a teenager."

"What about you, Minerva?" Hermione asked curiously as they reached the porch.

"Well, I suppose I'm the veteran of the group, since I've been to more than I can count," Minerva admitted with a thin smile. "Of course, it's been a very, very, long time since I've done this with other staff. The last time, in fact, was not long after Rolanda Hooch had signed on to Hogwarts. I will never forget the morning after that Coven Night."

"What? Not the night itself?" Jennifer asked curiously.

"No, I'm afraid I still have trouble remembering that part," Minerva said, the others laughing as they went inside.

It was still fairly early, and only the local patronage had begun to trickle in, greeting each other warmly. Rosmerta had been glancing towards the door at every chance she got, making herself at their disposal the moment she emptied her tray of drinks.

"Right this way," she said with a secretive smile, leading them off the main floor and through the kitchen and stock room.

"Thank you for setting this up at such short notice," Minerva said.

"No trouble at all… in fact, it worked out perfectly," Rosmerta said with a wink. "My normal Friday group just moved to Saturday a couple of weeks ago, so if you want to do it again, just let me know."

"Actually, perhaps once a month would be nice," Minerva suggested, the others nodding in agreement. "It'll do us all good to get out of the castle now and then." Rosmerta smiled and nodded, turning to an oak door and unlocking it, leading the way down a set of steps.

Anna, following right behind her, wasn't quite sure what she had been expecting. But this in many ways was closer to what she had once thought was magic before she discovered her true heritage.

The wine cellar was cool but not chilly, and the smell of incense, very light yet spicy, drifted in the air. On one side of the cellar, lit by standing candelabras was a pentagonal table, sitting in the center of a golden star that had been carefully painted on the polished floorboards. Five simple wooden chairs sat around it and five tall cups were spaced around a small black cauldron that sat in the center of the table.

"This doesn't involve Dark magic, does it?" Anna asked warily.

"What in the world gave you that notion?" Jennifer said, staring at her.

"Many Muggles think that pentagrams represent the devil," Hermione said. Jennifer rolled her eyes.

"What do squares represent?" Jennifer asked her.

"Boring people," Hermione explained.

"Triangles?" Jennifer asked.

"All right, so it is rather silly, now that you mention it," Anna said, cutting them off. "I suppose rather like the idea that covens involved dancing naked in the woods on moonless nights."

"Oh, no, that tradition died ages ago," Hermione explained.

"The history lesson can wait, girls," Minerva said, going over to a chair. "The brief reason that tradition went out of style is the fact that the whole point of Coven Night is to get away from the men for a while, not to attract them."

"Do you need anything else? If not, I'd best be getting back to the front," Rosmerta said with a smile. "Everyone has their drinks?" This time Anna nodded with the rest of them. Hermione had at least warned her to bring that. "Very well, I'll check up on you later, have a good evening."

As Rosmerta left they took their seats, looking over the top of the cauldron at each other, having a clear view of the faces of all the other witches in the group. Jennifer stared in the cauldron as if lost in thought, while beside her Danny had leaned back calmly, her lip curled in a slight smile. Hermione was gazing very intently at Minerva, who had adjusted her floppy green hat so that she could see them all better.

"Since there are some here who are new to the Covenant of Witches, I suppose I should lay out the ground rules. They are quite simple," Minerva told them, bringing out a teapot and setting it before her. "Everyone in the star contributes to the cauldron and must take a drink as a symbolic bond of sharing this time together. After that, one may drink as little or as much as they like without guilt. Remember that any words spoken here go no further than this room, and members are encouraged to bare their thoughts and ask whatever questions they have of others, and have the right to answer or refuse to answer whatever they like. And last but not least, we should keep talk of work to a minimum."

"I don't recall that last rule mentioned in the ceremony," Hermione said. Minerva smirked at her.

"Yes, well, I'm sure whoever started this whole thing hasn't had the experience trying to run these with the Hogwarts staff that I have. I know better," Minerva said. "Now, let's see, who shall start? Jennifer, I suppose. What did you bring and what is its significance to you?"

"I brought a bottle of Coca-Cola Classic," Jennifer announced with a wry grin, taking out the bottle, twisting off the top, and pouring it into the cauldron. The cauldron smoked strangely and sizzled as it was poured in. "It reminds me of birthdays, holidays, and the fact that I still have some goals left to achieve," Jennifer said with a slight glint in her eye.

"I know what you mean by having goals to achieve. I've heard from Corey about your burping concoctions trying to duplicate it," Danny said teasingly. "But what of birthdays and holidays?"

"Because that's what I always end up giving her on those occasions," Anna said, the others chuckling at her response.

"Danny, what did you bring?" Minerva asked, going in order around the table.

"Some fine Irish Whiskey," Danny said cheerfully, bringing it out. "It's actually from an old Wizard family who have been in the business for generations, and their private label has always been called Golden Heritage. So I brought it because it's the only golden heritage I have, and also because it has a nice kick."

"That usually goes along with any sort of heritage," Anna couldn't help but to add. The others chuckled again while Danny carefully poured a couple of shots in.

"I brought some Newt Wine from this very cellar," Hermione said. "I brought it because it's actually one of the more traditional drinks used in this ceremony, and since this is my first time, I want it to be a success," Hermione said, carefully measuring out a glass and pouring it in.

"There isn't real newt in that wine, is there?" Anna said warily.

"Only the eyes, and they of course are quite preserved in the alcohol," Hermione assured her. Anna looked in the cauldron as if not reassured at all.

"For some reason I'm not sure that's going to mix well with whiskey and coke."

"Don't worry about the flavor, it'll come out all right," Hermione said. "The cauldron's charmed to help out that problem."

"Yes, each item will retain its properties, but you will find that any brew made in one of these cauldrons ends up tasting the same, rather like a heady beer." Minerva explained.

"Oh, well, that sounds all right to me then," Anna said.

"What did you bring?" Jennifer asked.

"Absinthe. Er, no particular reason other than it's illegal in some of the States and I thought we were supposed to be having fun and not be so serious," Anna said.

"On the contrary, I bet Sirius was on your mind when you picked it… at least subconsciously," Danny said with a wicked look on her face. "After all, absinthe makes the heart grow fonder, doesn't it?" The rest of them groaned at her but then jumped to attention as Anna poured some in with Jennifer and Minerva insisting she put in no more than a swallow.

"The mixture is going to be potent enough as it is," Minerva told her with a wry smile. "And I've the most potent ingredient of all," she said tapping her teapot. "Black tea, with a dash of pumpkin spice. When you are ill it is a salvation, when stressed it is a release. It is a reason to socialize, philosophize and even for some to revolutionize. And also because the last time I brought alcohol to a Coven, so did everyone else, and it was a miracle that we were able to get to the Quidditch game the next day. Rolanda had to referee," she added, the others laughing as they realized it was the same incident they had spoken of earlier.

She carefully poured a rather large amount of the tea in and the smoke that curled over the edges of the cauldron began to glow, turning green, yellow, red, blue and white until finally it dissipated. Inside they saw a liquid of dark gold with a lovely silver ladle leaning on one side.

"Do you mind if I take a look at the ladle before we start?" Jennifer asked. The others chuckled softly at her.

"Why don't you go ahead and pour out?" Minerva said with a smile, holding her cup out helpfully as Jennifer went around the table, filling each to the brim before sitting down. "So? Who would like to contribute first?" The witch asked mischievously.

Alex paused on the stair to change the film in the Motionpro 100 and tucked the used roll away, looking around thoughtfully. It was just after dinner, but most of the students had already gone to their rooms so she thought it would be the perfect opportunity for her to go out and finish what she'd promised her siblings that she'd do.

"So where to next, Alex?" Mandria asked. Her feet ached slightly from all the trekking about the castle they had done already, but was quite certain they were far from done.

"Maybe the back grounds, or the Quidditch Pitch," Alex mused, heading down the stairs.

"I'm not walking to the Quidditch Pitch now, it'll be dark," Mandria said. "Why would you want to take a photo of the back grounds?"

"There's a good view of the forest from there, and the mountains too, if I can get the angle right," Alex said.

"Well, it'd make more sense to me to take pictures of, well, more interesting places. So far you've taken pictures of the dorms, some of the halls to the classrooms, the courtyard, and this stairwell. Wouldn't they be more interested in the library or the Great Hall or something?" Mandria suggested.

"There's probably people still lingering about the hall and the library right now," Alex said. "I'd rather not disturb them."

"Honestly, the way you're acting I'd almost think you were worried that you were going to get into trouble," Mandria said. "I mean, it's not like we're wandering after hours or doing anything remotely questionable."

"And how long would it take Xavier to find us if we made a grand entrance in the hall and started taking photos?" Alex asked her.

"Well, you do have a point there. He does tend to follow us around to the point of annoyance," Mandria agreed. "You'd think he'd have more to do than to tag a couple of first years. But to be honest, Alex, I didn't really think you minded it. In fact, it usually seems like you enjoy the attention."

"The lesser of evils. I find that when he's around no one else bothers us, including that self-centered Gryffindor Donovan," Alex said.

"Well, there's little worry about either of them showing up with those preseason parties going on tonight," Mandria said. "I say we take some photos of some more interesting rooms. Perhaps the Trophy Room? Or how about the view from the Owlery?"

"How about the greenhouses?" Alex said as they stepped outside, checking the flash.

"Yes, I suppose that would be interesting," Mandria said, "If you're a plant."

"Is someone out there?"

Startled, the two girls looked over towards a lantern light coming from the door of the closest greenhouse.

"Or if you happen to be Rose Bailey, apparently," Mandria added.

"What are you doing out here?" Alex said in surprise, going closer. "Aren't you supposed to be at that welcoming party for the new Quidditch players and all that?"

"And spend the entire night watching the Gaffney boys glare at Donovan while Donovan's busy glaring between them and me?" Rose asked disdainfully. "Besides, I had to make sure the Elfwillow was warm enough," she added, nodding to the plant in her arms. The plant actually looked content and rather sleepy in an odd sort of way, but definitely not put out by the blanket around its pot.

"You guys will never play good ball this year acting like this," Mandria said in a scolding tone. "The boys are going at each other like a couple of children, and you go and hide in the greenhouse any time someone says something to you. You're going to have to pull it together if you plan to work as a team."

"Now you're starting to sound like McGonagall," Rose frowned, stepping back in long enough to put the plant to bed, coming back out with only her lantern in hand. "What are you two doing out here, anyhow?"

"I'm taking photos of the castle to send to my sister. Would you like to join us?" Alex asked.

"Yes, help me convince her to take photos of something more interesting than hallways," Mandria pleaded to Rose.

"My sister likes to paint and I know she wanted to see the paintings," Alex explained. "Where else are the paintings but in the halls?"

"How about the Trophy Room?" Rose suggested.

"Yes, what about it?" Mandria agreed.

"Oh, all right. I doubt we'll be running to anyone there at this time of night," Alex agreed, and the three of them walked back inside.

It was just up the stairs and not far down the hall, the doorway just before they got to the indoor gym. Trophies filled the cabinets around the room, while on the walls were plaques as well as paintings and photos of Quidditch captains and some of the old instructors, including Madame Hooch, who winked at them from where she stood leaning on her broom.

"I wonder if my father is listed in here somewhere," Mandria said, peering in the cases with interest. "He used to be a fair Beater in his day from what I'm told. He was a Gryffindor, though."

"Most of my family didn't even go to Hogwarts at all, they went to Greenbarrow in Tyrone. From what mother said the entire school could fit in the Great Hall. They don't really have teams to speak of; not enough students." Rose explained. "I would have gone to Greenbarrow too, but grandfather thought I had been much too isolated already and asked the Headmaster if I could come here."

"What about your parents, Alex?" Mandria asked. A flash filled the room and Alex peered out from behind the camera.

"Mum went to Whitebridge, but was never crazy about brooms. She prefers taking the horses out when she wants to fly. Father is another story," she said with a grin. "He won't talk about it, but my cousins told me that he got kicked off the team and my uncle had something to do with it."

"Oh!" Mandria said with surprise, the others pausing to look up above to the door to see what she was looking at. "Who do you suppose that is?"

The three girls looked over the door at the rosy-cheeked older woman sleeping in the large frame. Her hands rested in her lap, pleasantly pink against the detailed gold robes. Every now and then, Alex could swear she saw the woman's chest rise and fall, but not a sound could be heard from the painting.

"A very well done painting," Rose said appreciatively. "I wonder why she's asleep? None of the others are, and it's very early."

"Maybe she fell asleep during the sitting," Mandria chuckled. Alex raised her camera, turning it to the side to get a good angle. "Oh, be careful, Alex! The flash might wake her up!"

"Well then maybe we can find out who she is," Alex shrugged, focusing the lens.

"We're not supposed to disturb sleeping paintings," Rose said.

"Honestly! What harm can one snapshot do?" Alex said.

But just before she snapped the painting, a shadow appeared in the doorway. Yelping in surprise, the camera flew into the air, neatly caught with a swift movement from Severus Snape, stepping into the room looking none too pleased to find them in there.

"Is this a private tour or can anyone join?" he asked, a dangerous flash in the eye. "And just who gave you permission to take photos of this school, Miss Snape?"

"It's for Alicia. I promised her I'd send her some photos of the school," Alex explained.

"Alicia will see the school when it's her time to see the school, just like everyone else," Severus frowned, looking at the camera. "And isn't this the camera your mother gave Aurelius for his birthday this year?"

"Er… yes, well, I borrowed it before I left. My camera keeps making all my photos twitch."

"If you took better care of your things instead of dropping them out of trees we wouldn't be having this conversation at all," Severus snapped. "And knowing that your brother has enough sense than to ever let you borrow anything, I assume you 'borrowed' this without permission. I'll be returning this. Without the film," he added.

"Then I can have that part back?" Alex suggested hopefully. The other two girls stifled a giggle and Severus turned to glare at all of them equally.

"And since you girls seem to have so much time on your hands, I must then assume that I'm not giving enough homework. Bailey, a fifty-inch essay on cursed paintings and photos. Snape, Shea, a forty-inch essay on Lurkers and how to deal with them. I will find all three essays on my desk when I get there on Monday morning. Perhaps you should get started. Now," he added warningly. Glancing at each other ruefully, the three girls walked out of the room and towards the stairs.

"Good thing he didn't ask if I had any more film," Alex whispered to the other two as they headed up to their dorms.

But Severus had lost complete interest in the three the moment they had left the room. Instead, he stood looking up at the painting of Caprica Dusthorn, carefully timing every breath and watching for any indication of movement. A few moments later he exhaled slowly, shaking his head with a frown. Well, at least he didn't have to worry about that. He stepped back into the gym where his own image in the training mirror was still waiting, glaring at him in complete irritation of having been kept waiting. But Severus did take a moment to glance down at his wedding ring, noting the peaceful light blue color in the diamond before returning back to his routine.

In the wine cellar of the Three Broomsticks, Jennifer was looking at her ring as well, curious about the strange range of emotions that had just crossed it before settling into a greyish-blue. Anna, Danny, and Hermione were still laughing from Minerva's last comment, all three of them having drank quite liberally from the cauldron. Jennifer and Minerva exchanged smirks at that, both of them still sipping on their first cups.

"You know when we first organized this, I was worried about what we were going to talk to you about, Minerva," Hermione admitted wiping her eyes as she finally gained control. "I mean, we all have our husbands to complain about, but you seem to know more about men than any of us."

"One can't judge men fairly if one hasn't seen their professional side as well," Minerva said with amusement. "But don't think just because I'm married to my job doesn't mean I've not had an affair now and then."

"Really, Minerva? Anyone we know?" Danny asked with open interest.

"One or two, perhaps, not that I'd ever betray their confidence," Minerva said, taking another sip, her eyes focused on the smoke still rising from a cauldron. "One of them was a sort of accident… although to this day I wonder if it was so much of an accident at all." Even Anna couldn't help but become curious at that, and Minerva soon found that all eyes, glassy as though some might be, were focused on her.

"It was quite some years ago, when the presence of Voldemort still only existed in whispers from those who debated supporting him and mere rumors to those who just opposed him. His strength was still debatable by many, but even then the school began to feel his presence among the students, even the staff…" she said, cutting herself short as if wanting to choose her words more carefully. "I was helping a colleague with a Transfiguration experiment. As you know, when something inorganic is transformed, it retains no working properties of its old form, not having the 'living' memory that plants and animals do. But he wanted to see if that rule could be bent; to see if we could find a way to change enchanted or magic crafted items to look like other things and still keep all of the original magical qualities while in its new form."

"But when items are enchanted and crafted, the spells that are cast on them are usually specifically designed to function with what the item's purpose is; clock enchantments only work on clocks, broom enchantments only work on brooms, and so on," Jennifer said, Hermione nodding in agreement.

"You would have to somehow transfigure the enchantments placed on the item as well as the item's purpose," Hermione said with a hiccup. "Can't be done."

"Spells can be broken, bound, averted, why not changed?" Jennifer said thoughtfully.

"Did the experiment work?" Anna asked.

"Well, not that night," Minerva said sheepishly. "You see, we were working alone in the Potion Lab to have some access to a few particular ingredients, and the Potion Master at the time had decided it might be cheaper getting Passiontears from its source."

"Oh dear, you don't mean…" Hermione said in a whisper.

"Yes, we were cupified," Minerva nodded, "by a rather enthusiastic band of caged Cupid Elves who woke up as a result of all the spell casting we were doing."

Anna stared at Minerva, trying to decide if she imagined hearing what she just heard or not.

"I'd hate to have woken up in that bed the next morning," Danny chuckled.

"Yes well, I suppose it could have turned out much worse, had it been with anyone else," Minerva said thoughtfully. "Actually, the entire situation was quite pleasant for both of us I think, although we knew within a week that the… unprofessional side of our relationship... was something that couldn't continue. Dark times were upon us, and we both had jobs to do, jobs dependent on each other's focused cooperation. Not that I would say that short time together hasn't affected our professional relationship over the years, it has. But it's always influenced things in positive ways rather than negative, and I'm quite sure we made the right decision in the end."

"Perhaps things would be easier for the rest of us if we all hadn't gotten married. I mean, juggling between home life and work is quite a chore," Danny admitted thoughtfully, twisting her cup. "But trying to weigh them, I couldn't possibly ever give one up over the other… although, if I were living through the time you had, perhaps I would have."

"I don't think I could have done it," Hermione admitted.

"I tried letting it go once," Jennifer chuckled. "It didn't work, and I'm so glad it didn't."

"Do you ever have any regrets?" Anna asked Minerva.

"No, none whatsoever," Minerva said, smiling back at her. "And to be perfectly honest, I've been going over it a lot lately too; all I've done, the bumps in the road and all of that, wondering how things might have been. But I've decided that I wouldn't change a thing, so all that's left, I suppose, is looking ahead."

Jennifer watched Minerva thoughtfully as she sipped her drink, looking for affirmation of what she supposed Minerva meant by that. But it was other the piece of knowledge she had learned from Minerva's face that had made her mind swim.

It wasn't until after the cauldron was emptied and Francis Pyther appeared to help Hermione, Danny, and Anna home and that Jennifer was finally able to say what she had been bursting to say since that moment.

"So," Jennifer began as she and Minerva walked along the forest path. "Do you think any of them will guess? That you were talking about Albus, I mean?"

"Do you think they'll even remember the conversation at all?" Minerva asked back mischievously. "No one has remembered it yet."

"I will," Jennifer pointed out. Minerva smiled slightly at her, looking at her from the corner of her eye before focusing on the path again.

"I know," Minerva said, continuing on her way.