Chapter 51
One Conspirator Identified
Cassie looked at George in complete confusion. "What? I don't understand. How would putting
the Prime Minister under the Imperious curse possibly help Blackman find Grimmauld Place?"
"Yeah," Fred echoed right behind Cassie. "How?"
George raised his eyebrows. "Didn't you two listen to what Tonks just said?"
Cassie shook her head while Fred just looked sheepish. "I was too busy paying attention to the
fact that there was an actual head in your fire to listen to anything she said until the very end."
"I can understand that I guess, but what's your excuse?" George looked at Fred.
"Uh, would you believe me if I told you I was thinking about how to improve the Rudolpho's?"
"Yeah. I'd believe that and it actually wouldn't surprise me at all." Arthur wasn't listening to the
three of them talk but Cassie noticed out of the corner of her eye as he grabbed his cloak off the
hook by the door and threw it on. He disapparated quickly and Cassie turned her attention back to
George, thinking that she would have to ask George where his dad had gone.
"Tonks said that Blackman and Sootspinner were in with the Prime Minister this afternoon for at
least an hour. After they left, the Prime Minister called in various department heads for short
meetings. He dealt especially with the Home Office and the military people. She said she
overheard comments by several of the people as they left the office and they were really confused.
Your Dad, Cassie, was worried, too. In fact, I think that's where my dad just went. To talk to
yours."
"I still don't understand how this all . . . has to do with Remus."
"He's using Muggle police to track it down. He's got wizards working with Muggle policeman . . .
all on the pretext of looking for terrorists. I still can't believe none of this penetrated either of your
brains . . . but, okay. She said that he knows the general area for Headquarters and that they are
doing a house to house search, starting tomorrow. If they get close, Remus will have to get out
quickly, that's when Mum said he'd have to come here."
"I heard that part."
"Well, that's about it, then. Apparently Sootspinner and Blackman are telling the Prime Minister
to do this."
"But why do they want Headquarters? I mean, no offense, but isn't it just a building?"
"Well, yeah. Remember? That's what I asked at the beginning of this little conversation."
"Oh, yeah. I forgot." Cassie was a little embarrassed.
"I mean, I don't know what Blackman wants, really. And the fact the Aurors are involved. . . . it's
all just very confusing."
"The Aurors?"
"Sootspinner. He's in charge of the Aurors right now, remember?"
Cassie stared at George for a minute. "So they're working together?"
"Apparently."
"I don't suppose you have a picture of him?"
"No. I . . ." George looked at her with a sideways glance. "Do you think you may have seen him
there?"
"Maybe. I don't know. It's worth trying. He's not a Death Eater, is he?"
"Of course not! Why would the Ministry put a Death Eater in as head of the group that's
supposed to be fighting them?"
"Again, no offense, but I really wouldn't put it past them."
George laughed. "You could be right. I'll have Dad dig you up a picture somewhere. I'm sure
there's one around."
Fred shook his head in obvious confusion. "But they'll never actually find Headquarters. They
can't. It's Fidelius Charmed and everything. And Dumbledore's the Secret Keeper."
"If you ask me," Cassie said, looking very seriously at the two of them, "then you may as well
paint a big target on the building with a neon sign saying - 'Wizards here.' Those Fidelius charms
are worthless."
"Well, that's not true. They're impenetrable."
"Ha!" She would have said more but Molly, who had apparently been doing something in the
other room, came bustling in and Cassie didn't pursue the subject.
Cassie and the twins helped Molly clean up after dinner even though all of them were lost in their
own thoughts. They then went out into the living room to wait for Arthur to come back. Cassie
was very nervous about her dad. It didn't sound like he was in immediate danger, but she knew
that Blackman was keeping a close eye on him, and if he did anything suspicious, he could easily
have him killed. This was not a comforting thought. If someone had asked Cassie later what she
had done that evening, she honestly did not think she could have said. They talked, but it was
mostly small talk about events at the store and preparations for Christmas. Many times they just
sat in silence, listening for Arthur's return. It was at least an hour before Cassie heard the now
familiar pop in the kitchen and everyone got up to greet Arthur who looked tired and worried.
Cassie helped Molly serve up the apple tart and coffee while Arthur filled them in on what he had learned.
"Well, it doesn't look good. I went first to see what Andrew had to say. He really didn't know
much more than Tonks told us, although I could tell he was worried, too. He is also worried that
this may cause internal problems in the government because some are questioning whether he is
still fit to lead."
"I don't suppose Mr. Robinson has any idea how the Muggle police are supposed to find a
Fidelius charmed house, does he?"
"Obviously not, but Albus thinks he knows."
"When did you talk to Albus?" Molly asked, surprised.
"Right after I left Andrew and Rebecca. Sometimes I hate those blasted wards. Had to walk all
the way in from the gate and then, of course, had to sneak into the castle and find Albus and it
was not easy. There are Aurors all over that place. It would make me feel relieved about Ginny
and Ron's safety, but I don't trust them. They're there to arrest Albus and Remus, not to watch
out for the students."
"Oh, speaking of Aurors, Cassie wants to see a picture of Sootspinner." Arthur's gaze sharpened
on her immediately.
"Yes. Yes. Of course."
"So, what's Dumbledore's theory?" George gestured impatiently at his father.
Arthur just shrugged. "I don't know. He's supposed to come in the morning to talk about it."
"Do you think they're trying to arrest Dumbledore so they can force him to give up the secret?"
Arthur's brow crinkled at Fred's question. "I would say that was a distinct possibility except that
they don't know that he's the secret keeper."
"But they have to suspect. I mean, it would be the obvious choice."
"Maybe. Maybe. It would make sense, I guess." There was nothing else to really say after that and
Cassie went to bed only a few minutes later feeling inestimably weary.
Unfortunately, this did not translate to getting to sleep, however. Cassie lay awake for a very long
while as her mind went over the evening's events again and again.
Cassie awoke with her alarm clock the next morning. She was tired as she hadn't slept well and
considered having a lie-in. She was sure Molly wouldn't mind. But then she remembered that
Arthur had said Professor Dumbledore was coming this morning, so she pulled herself out of bed
and stumbled to the bathroom. Cassie rubbed her eyes blearily as she pushed the half-open door
wide and blinked frantically at the sudden intrusion of light onto her dark-adjusted pupils. Her
eyes teared up and she closed her eyes instantly, trying to crack open one eye.
"Good morning, sleepyhead," said a very amused masculine voice.
Cassie was not similarly amused. "The lights, the lights." She hoped he was decent, not that she
could tell. But instead of dimming the lights in consideration of her pain, he just laughed again.
She cracked open her eye again and this time, allowed the pupil to adjust to the light of the lamps.
When she finally could, she opened her other eye and focused on his grinning face. He was
smiling at her and despite her frustration at his unwillingness to dim the lamps, she felt her mouth
curving into a matching grin. "You didn't shut the door."
"Well, I expected Fred to come down and I needed to let the steam out from my shower. Sorry."
He'd already showered? Despite the thought that she definitely should not be doing this, she felt
her eyes drop down from his face and encountered bare chest. Ah. She willed her eyes back to his
face but they did not obey, rather only traced the lines of muscles on his chest down to the towel
that was fastened around his waist. He noted her scrutiny and laughed again. "I'm almost done,
but you're welcome to use the sink, if you need to." He nodded at her toothbrush in explanation.
She looked at his face again and saw for the first time that he had a bit of shaving cream on one
cheek and was holding a razor in one hand.
"Okay." She wet her toothbrush under the faucet and carefully applied toothpaste, trying not to
let her hand shake as she stealthily studied him in the mirror. He was carefully pulling the razor
over his face and she glanced back at her toothbrush before he met her eyes. "I would have
thought you would have had some more sophisticated way of shaving than a regular safety razor."
"Well, it's possible to use magic, but if you really want a nice smooth shave, actual blades work
best." She nodded, and put her toothbrush in her mouth. "I'm done, love, I'll let you have your
privacy." And he walked out of the bathroom, shutting the door firmly behind himself. She
brushed her teeth quickly, her heart pounding rapidly at what had just happened. It was not
possible that she had just seen him in a towel, was it? Was she dreaming? She pinched herself
quickly. No, she was definitely awake. She nodded to herself, admitting that he looked pretty
good wearing only a towel. She blushed at her own daring and shook her head, trying to
concentrate on brushing her teeth.
Back in her room, she dressed quickly and ran a comb through her hair, taking a deep breath as
she started down the stairs. She could hear Molly downstairs but nothing else. When she reached
the kitchen, though, Arthur was sitting at the table and three coffee cups were arranged on its
surface. She knew without asking that Professor Dumbledore had come and gone. She felt bad for
missing him. She tried to read on Arthur's face the way the discussion had gone, but his face was
carefully blank. Molly was standing at the stove and Cassie joined her. They smiled at each other,
speechlessly dividing the work along what were quickly becoming familiar lines. They prepared
bacon, eggs, grilled tomatoes, toast, and marmalade, with pumpkin juice and more hot coffee. A
few minutes later, Cassie heard the heavy tramping of the twins' feet on the stairs. She turned to
greet them and immediately remembered how George's shoulders and chest had looked without
his shirt. She felt the heat of a very rosy blush and noticed George too was blushing lightly. Fred
had a puzzled and suspicious look on his face as he glanced between the two. Cassie was relieved
that neither Arthur nor Molly seemed to notice the blushes, which came and went throughout
breakfast. After everyone was done eating, Arthur took a deep breath.
"I'm almost dreading showing you this. But here." He handed a surprised Cassie a small
photograph. It was moving, but not much and she could clearly see the face of the wizard in the
snapshot. She studied it carefully but didn't have any doubts. She had seen the face before, one
dark night exactly two weeks ago last night. There was no question about it. She nodded faintly
and the four other occupants of the kitchen caught their collective breath.
"Well, that is certainly interesting. I will get the news to Dumbledore today, I hope."
"Is that Sootspinner?" Everybody nodded and Cassie could feel the tension in the room as she
looked at the photo again. "I remember him so clearly. He was sitting next to the one empty chair
in the room. He was wearing dark green robes, I think, with black piping. Or at least that's what I
remember." Arthur was nodding.
"Yes. He likes green. He thinks it brings out the color of his eyes. Most of his robes are a forest
green. Which is interesting, because I think he was in Ravenclaw at school, not Slytherin. Well,
thank you, Cassie. This might really help." Ten minutes later, all three men were ready to
disapparate, Cassie rather shyly kissing George on the cheek and then Fred for good measure.
Fred looked between her and George again, obvious questions in his eyes. But then they were
gone and Cassie didn't envy George today, sure that he would get the third degree all morning
long.
After the men had left for work, Cassie helped Molly clean up and then she settled down in front
of the fire to read. She had only been reading a short time when she heard a voice. Cassie looked
up to again see Tonks' head in the fire, let out a little yelp of surprise, and went to fetch Molly
from the other room. Molly followed her in and Cassie couldn't help but wonder what was wrong
now. Judging by the look on Tonks' face, it was definitely not a social call.
"The police have moved faster than we imagined they possibly could. Their information was
obviously very good. They're on the street now, and the wizards with them have started casting
the spells Albus believes will expose the house. Remus has got to get out now. I think Albus is
going to have him portkey out but we don't know for sure -"
"I told you last night that he should come here. And I meant it."
"Thank you, Molly. But I actually am here for another reason. We have no way to notify Remus
that he has got to get out. The Floo network is being watched too carefully. We had planned on
Albus just apparating there and telling him personally that the time had come to leave but that
won't work now. What we really need is someone who can get right into the house."
"I don't understand - what can I do to help you?"
"Not you, Molly. Cassie," and Tonks' eyes searched her out in the room, "your portkey will take
you directly into the house. Then you and Remus can get out together. We hate to involve you,
but we just don't have any choice." Cassie felt a sudden onset of nerves in her stomach. She didn't
trust the Fidelius Charm on the house at all but if Remus was there she couldn't just leave him to
the kind mercies of the police and the Ministry wizards they had with them. Molly was shaking
her head.
"No. There has to be some other way. Another portkey can be set up that someone else can use . .
."
"That would be ideal, but it's just not possible. It takes some time to get a portkey made that can
pass through wards that strong and time is one thing we do not have."
"I'll go. I'll go immediately." Cassie didn't even wait for either of them to acknowledge her
statement before she walked into the kitchen to grab the ugly little statue. Molly followed her and
just before she touched it, she heard her voice tell her to take care of herself and Remus and to
come back as soon as possible. Then the now too-familiar tugging vibrated through her body and
it was only a moment later that she opened her eyes in the hallway of #12 Grimmauld Place. The
house was quiet, almost too quiet, and she had the sudden thought that if Remus had already left,
she was stuck here with no options. Panic filled her throat and she tried to cry out for him, but
couldn't get out any noise. "Calm down," she told herself. "They aren't just going to leave you
here. And he's probably still here." This time, when she called out for him, she heard an answering
yell from another part of the house.
Remus found her in the hallway a few moments later and to say he looked surprised would have
been a distinct understatement. "Cassie! What the hell are you doing here? Is there a problem?
What's happened at the Burrow?"
She shook her head. "There's nothing wrong at the Burrow. There's something wrong here.
You've got to get out immediately!"
"What? Why?" Remus looked very puzzled, like he expected her to start laughing any moment
and say it was just a joke.
"Tonks said that the police are already on this street and that the wizards are casting the spells to
dissolve the wards."
"That's impossible!"
"Honestly, Remus. She showed up in the fire at the Burrow just a few minutes ago. She said that
they couldn't notify you because no one could come to the house except for me. Something about
my being able to come right into the house . . ."
"Yes, yes. Okay. Well, I've got the papers upstairs. Come on, Cassie. If they're that close, we
have no time to waste." Cassie had no idea what papers he was talking about but followed him up
to a bedroom on the second level where there was a large pile of boxes. "I was planning on sitting
on these to let the portkey take them as well. And I guess that will still work with the two of us.
You better hold on to that handle there." Cassie looked at the pile of boxes. They were plain
looking cardboard file holders like people used when they were moving offices, but they had cut-out handles on the side. "Uh, I guess before I do this portkey, you better tell me where we're
supposed to go."
"The Burrow. Molly insisted."
"Okay." He picked up a picture frame, said something while waving his wand, and it glowed
bright blue for a brief second. He then climbed onto the pile of boxes himself and sat down next to
Cassie. "This feels vaguely familiar." She laughed, but didn't even have time to finish before the
portkey activated and she, Remus, and the boxes disappeared from Grimmauld Place and
reformed themselves in the quiet kitchen of the Burrow.
Molly apparently heard their landing because she came rushing in a second later. "Oh, thank
goodness. You've arrived safely." She hugged both Cassie and Remus in the sort of smothering
hugs she was known for and then ran back out into the living room. "I've got to let Tonks know
that the package has arrived."
"What package?" Cassie asked Remus when Molly had rushed out the kitchen door.
"I think she means us. If they're watching the Floo network, which I can only imagine they are,
she can't very well tell her that I'm here. That would be a complete red flag and Aurors would
certainly be here within the hour."
"Tonks said something about the Floo network."
"Yes. It would have been dangerous enough for her to even come here but . . . you said that the
police had already found Grimmauld Place?"
"Well, that's what Tonks said, although she didn't really say anything else about it that I
understood." Molly came back into the room.
"I told her. She was very relieved. Are you hungry, can I get you some breakfast or anything?"
"No, no. I'm fine. Do you understand what Tonks was saying about the police already finding the
house?"
"That's all I really know, Remus. She said that they would be at the house in a matter of only a
few minutes."
"I just don't understand this at all. Since when have wizards worked with Muggle policeman?
Why are the Ministry officials so determined to find Grimmauld Place? I still don't even
understand why I was set up. I feel disconnected, out of sorts, like I've been asleep for a hundred
years and now I'm awake and everything has changed." Molly was clucking her tongue in
sympathy.
"Yes, well. I'm sure we'll have answers soon enough. But, in the meantime, I'm putting you into
Percy's old room while you're here. Cassie, can you show him?" Cassie nodded. "I'm going to go
talk to Arthur for a minute. And I think I'd better go in person." Neither of them said anything as
with a quiet pop she left.
"Arthur thinks all this has something to do with the meeting I witnessed."
"What!!!" Remus turned his head to her so fast that she thought he may have broken his neck.
"The head of the Aurors, Sootspinner, he was one of the men at the meeting. They finally thought
to show me a picture of him and I definitely recognized him." Remus stared at her for a long
moment and Cassie shifted uncomfortably on her feet. It was the truth. He had definitely been
there. She could even remember where he was sitting when that door had opened. "It's true. I
wouldn't make something like that up."
"No . . . no. Of course not, I just . . . I've known him for years. I always liked him." Remus looked
away from Cassie and she wished with all her heart that she was mistaken. But she knew she wasn't.
"I'm sorry, Remus." He didn't answer for a long moment.
"Yes. Well, you have nothing to apologize for." He smiled rather wanly. "You'd better show me
to the room. I'd like to get these up there so they don't get in Molly's way." Cassie showed him to
Percy's room, struck again as she opened the door for him at how impersonal it was. Remus stood
in the doorway and directed the boxes as they floated up the stairs and into the room, where he
stacked them neatly on the empty desk. "So, Cassie, how are you settling in here at the Burrow?"
"Fine. It's fun here. Molly is very nice. Everyone else is very busy. How is everyone at school?"
Remus gave her that small sad smile again.
"I wouldn't know. I haven't been back."
"But . . . your classes?"
"I daresay they were canceled this week. Either that or Severus is teaching them. I didn't have the
option of showing up for them. I would have been arrested on the spot."
"Oh, Remus! I'm sorry! I forgot about that!"
"That's all right. Albus can hide in the school somehow and still have people he trusts relay
messages etc. And the portraits keep him informed of what is going on. But as a teacher I don't
have that luxury." The last box settled into place on the desk followed almost immediately by a
rather battered-looking suitcase that opened itself on the foot of the bed.
Cassie searched around for a different topic of conversation, anxious to get away from these
rather sad ones. "Uh, so what's in all these boxes?"
"Paperwork. Every organization, even a secret one, runs on reams of parchment, this is ours. We
didn't dare leave it there."
"Will they destroy the house when they find it?"
Remus looked at her for a long moment and Cassie wondered if he had, somewhere along the
road, picked up the skill of Legilimency. He kept giving her these very long looks that made her
feel completely exposed. "I don't know. They might."
"Did you save the pictures of Sirius, then?"
"No." The answer was so short that Cassie felt embarrassed for having asked. So much for a
happier topic of conversation.
"Well, I guess I'll leave you to get settled in." The door closed behind her and she stood staring at
it for a long time before she went back downstairs. Molly had come back and was in the kitchen
getting lunch.
"I need to tell you, Cassie, thanks for getting Remus. Arthur says that the house has already been
broken into. They seem to be looking for something." Cassie didn't answer. She felt like going up
to Ginny's room, throwing herself over the bed, and crying. She felt the insistent push of tears in
the back of her throat and tried to push them down. Finally, when she thought she could speak
without embarrassing herself, she spoke.
"It was easy. I'm glad I could help." Molly glanced back at her over her shoulder.
"Did Remus get settled in all right?"
"I guess so. He said the room was nice and thank you." He hadn't really, but Cassie figured it
wouldn't hurt to say so anyway. She moved to the counter next to Molly and started helping her.
She had at least three different pans on the stove and was mixing a cake at the moment. "Molly?
Aren't only three of us eating lunch?"
Molly looked at her, chagrin obvious in her face. "Yes. But when I'm nervous or upset, I cook. So
. . . I'm cooking."
"Okay. What can I do?"
An hour later, Molly, Cassie, and Remus sat down to a very large lunch. Contrary to Cassie's
worries, the subject of conversation was light and pleasant. The fact that Grimmauld Place was
possibly being searched even now or the fact that Remus was still in hiding from the law were not
discussed. Instead, it focused mainly on how the various Weasley children were doing. They spent
a long time talking about Bill and Fleur's plans and another long time about Ron and Ginny,
particularly about how they were both doing in Defense Against the Dark Arts. Cassie listened
with interest to the stories Remus was telling, laughing several times at things that Ron and Harry
did to get into trouble. Molly didn't seem to think they were as funny as she did.
The rest of the afternoon passed slowly. Molly kept popping in and out "arranging things" she
said and getting things that Remus said he needed. Cassie didn't actually see Remus as he was
busy doing something with all of the boxes although she had no idea what. Cassie realized that it
was now a week before Christmas and spent some time wrapping the few presents she did have.
She had no idea when or how she would get them to her parents and family, but trusted that she
would be able to somehow and she wanted to be ready when someone could take them for her.
She read a little and even took a short nap. When she eventually went down to see what she could
do to help with dinner, Molly was again cooking much more food than even the six of them could
eat. This time, though, this seemed to be more intentional, as most of it was put into the
refrigerator before Arthur or the boys even arrived at home. Cassie realized with a sudden jolt
that tomorrow Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Hermione would be arriving from Hogwarts and thought
that maybe Molly was getting some food prepared in advance. She had seen Ron and Harry eat
and together with the twins and any other Weasley siblings that happened to drop in, feeding them
could be quite a full-time job.
When George and Fred arrived at their usual time, both of them were very surprised to see Remus
sitting in the kitchen. George looked thunderstruck when he heard the whole story of how
Headquarters had been located so quickly and how Cassie had gone in to rescue Remus. His hand
had tightened on hers until it was almost painful before she finally pulled it out of his grip.
"George, don't worry now. It was easy. Piece of cake." Remus had laughed at the look on
George's face.
"That was nothing compared to the situations she was in at Hogwarts. She's a brave girl. I think
she's got nerves of steel." Cassie had shaken her head at that.
"I was always terrified, but what choice did I ever have?"
Remus had met her eyes squarely then and said in his best professor voice. "You have had some
choices from the very beginning of this and you've always performed admirably." Cassie had
flushed but was very pleased that he thought so.
Dinner was a fairly quiet affair although both George and Fred told Remus, Arthur, and Molly
about their success with the new gift certificates and they were all suitably impressed. After
dinner, George told Cassie that he had a gift for her and handed her a small corked bottle of clear
liquid. "What is this?"
"It's the potion to get the red out of your hair." Cassie grinned and ran upstairs to use it, hopping
into the shower and washing it through her hair, praying that George had put the potion together
correctly. Looking at herself in the mirror afterward, she smiled. It was good to see her hair blond
again. She had gotten extremely used to the red, but was glad to look like herself again. She
quickly rolled her hair into the sponge curlers, and then, not wanting to be the object of stares and
jeers all night, she tied a thin scarf around her head and managed to cover the majority of them.
New Muggle hairstyle indeed!
Sitting quietly on the couch next to George a few minutes later, Cassie listened as Remus, Arthur,
and the twins exchanged ideas about what was going on with Headquarters and the Ministry.
"We're really fortunate that Cassie saw the meeting, even though it has made her life extremely
complicated. If she hadn't, it's hard to know what sort of danger we'd all be in." Arthur beamed at
her as he said this, and Cassie smiled faintly. He was right, of course, but she really wished that
she had just stayed at George's shop that night and not decided to go exploring.
"And we're also fortunate that we have such a brave girl on our side. She has been beyond
spectacular, much better than I ever could have expected when she first arrived at Hogwarts. I
can't even count the number of times I was told, by fellow professors as well as other students,
how impressed they were at her magical skill. It took me a great deal of self-control not to burst
into laughter every time."
"So, she wasn't exaggerating about everyone thinking she was a powerful witch?" Fred asked as
George squeezed her hand in pride.
"Not at all!"
"But how did she do it? How did she fake everyone out?"
"I only know about my class, of course. And I tried to avoid making it necessary that she use
magic at all. I cast several spells on the students during the classes and lectured them several
times. I did use Imperius on her, just so she knew what the Prime Minister was experiencing. And
I have to say that surprisingly she managed to resist the curse quite well, better than many
students in her class. But she'd have to tell you about the other classes."
"You cast Imperius on the students?"
"Yes. It is allowed, although . . ."
"He did a weak Cruciatus, too, although I deferred having it put on me." They all stared at Remus
for a few minutes and he shrugged.
"I can't teach them to defend themselves against something they've never experienced. No one
screamed. It was quite weak."
"But we want details," Fred almost whined. "I want to know how you fooled them. I don't care
about what Remus did!"
"I told you . . . someone-"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Someone else did the magic and you pretended it was you. But, again, I want
details." Cassie laughed.
"It's true. I don't really know what else to say."
"Come on. You can remember, can't you?"
"I remember, I just . . . well, you realize that it required a lot of sneaking, lying, etc. I wouldn't
want any other students to get into trouble." She looked at Remus rather pointedly, but also let
her eyes drift over to Molly. Arthur was more laid back, and she supposed that he would be very
unlikely to give any of his children trouble over their underhanded behavior when they were trying
to help Cassie, or much of anything else, really.
"I'm sure that everything said here tonight," George said in a conspiratorial half whisper, "is
completely off the record."
Cassie groaned and thought back to her arrival at Hogwarts two weeks ago. "There's so much to
tell, I don't know where to start." But she closed her eyes for a second and leaned her head
against the back of the couch. Then she opened them again and looked into five eager faces. "It
started immediately, when I was going to my dorm room right after I got there. Harry and Ron
carried the trunk into Gryffindor tower, but when we needed to go up to the 6th year girls' dorm,
that was the first time we did it. It was Ginny and I, and Hermione assisted. They taught me the
spell Locomotor trunk . . . ."
