A/N: Wanna know a little more about the Dethart Family? This is your first peek. Have fun.

Fire shot up her side with each step she took. Common Room seemed to be an eternity away and the exhaustion she felt only made it worse. Tania kept glancing behind her, causally to anyone watching, but she could not keep the worry out of her eyes completely. Either HE would come back and continue what he started, or blood would leak from her robes and stain the floor behind her. Neither one was acceptable. No one could know how weak she was. They would realize how badly the Sorting Hat had erred in placing her in Slytherin. She was really a Hufflepuff, but no one seemed to know that.

Two curious Hufflepuffs magically appeared at her thought and watched her as she passed. The drain of the Glamour Spells she had on to hide her injuries increased from the scrutiny. Blasted idiots. She was temped to blow them away, but that was too much of an effort. She settled for glaring at them and they left quickly enough.

Finally she made it down to the dungeons and to the entrance to Common Room. Taking a deep breath and summoning her remaining strength and pride, she entered, then slowly made her way down the stairs. Once she reached the bottom, she found Hunter across the room with Charlie and Mark. Tania saw Blaise and Alex off to one side, but walked straight for her brother. She couldn't afford the energy it would take to side track to those two.

"Hunter, may I speak with you a moment?" she asked, quietly. All three boys looked up at the sound of her voice, two different kinds of surprise on their faces. Charlie and Mark were surprised that she was talking to them. It took them a long moment to recall who she was.

Hunter was surprised that she was talking to him in public. He wanted her to, but she usually refused. Something must be wrong, he decided. That was confirmed in his mind as he saw the telltale blurring around the corners of her eyes that told him she had at least three different Glamour Spells active. Instantly he rose and took her arm.

"I'll be back, guys. Keep working while I'm gone." He said, and gently, but firmly, pulled Tania into a corner of the Common Room and shielded her from view. A few muttered words placed a Silencing Ward around them. She closed her eyes for a moment and sighed.

"How bad is it?" Hunter asked softly. "I can see the Glamour Spells and you look exhausted. What did he do?" Years of long practice kept the fury at their brother out of his voice. There was not trace of it. Tania always thought such rage was directed at her and Hunter would never cause her anymore pain then she already received. She glanced at her Eldest brother.

"He was just mad. No reason this time, as far as I know. M-my face is a mess and I think he bruised some ribs. They don't feel broken this time. Bruises, abrasions….he…he had a ring on his hand." She swayed and Hunter hurriedly caught her.

"Let's get you some place quiet. Can you make it down to the empty room on your own? I'll grab my bag and meet you there." He bore most of her weight. She weighted less and less this term. He would have to keep a closer eye on how much she ate. He couldn't bear to lose her. Tania was the only thing he had to live for.

"If you promise to come quickly, I can make it there. Hunter, everything hurts." The normal quiet, impassive tones were replaced by the voice of a child who was in pain and didn't know what to do about it. Hunter's eyes widened as he heard. Tania needed to find a isolated place quickly. She hardly ever acted her age, but on a few occasions of metal exhaustion she reverted to her actual age and sometimes even younger. She had no control over these times and would be mortified if her Housemates saw.

"I'll fix everything, ok Tani?" he asked, using her pet name on purpose. "You go down to the room and I'll come right behind you. I can make the pain go away and make everything better." She nodded with exaggerated care at his statement and began to walk slowly back toward the stairs to leave Common Room. Hunter quickly grabbed his books from the table without a word to his friends and flew up the stairs. In his dorm, the books were thrown on the bed and he knelt next to his trunk. Flinging it open, he dug around until he found a brown bag. Closing and locking the trunk, he ran back down the stairs and out of the House.

He caught up with Tania as she was turning the last corner before the empty classroom. He slid an arm around her waist, remembering to watch for the ribs. She flinched at the touch until she turned and realized it was him. Hunter held up the bag and she grinned in relief. Pulling open the door, he led her inside. After locking the door, Hunter settled his sister on a blanket and began pulling vials and salves out of the bag.

The two Slytherin Detharts made their way into the Great Hall and over to the right-most table. Ed and Miles slid aside to let Hunter and Tania sit down. Without saying a word, her brother piled her plate with about three times the amount of food she normally ate. He plopped it down in front of her before serving himself. The other boys were paying attention to her this time and traded smiles at the look of disgust that flashed across her face.

"Hunter," she ventured. He sat down, then faced her, arching an eyebrow. He pointed at her plate.

"All of it. I don't want to see another one of these dizzy spells you had this afternoon." The Elder Dethart skillfully admonished his sister and explained away his absence in one stroke.

Mark leaned over, still holding his goblet in one hand. The other hand held a fork with a piece of steak on the end, which he brandished under her nose. "He's right, you know. Don't want anything to go wrong when those invaders get here. We all need to be ready."

Tania couldn't decided who to bless with a scathing comment, her brother, who suddenly thought he had to order her life, or Mark, who was talking to her out of the blue as if he knew her. She concluded that Mark was the better one to deal with now. Hunter would make the connections if she yelled at him later. She didn't know if Mark was that intelligent.

"You're dripping steak sauce on my broccoli, Master Donavan "Mark" Baddock," she said, adding sarcastic air quotes to the word Mark.. Half of the Slytherin Table fell silent at her comment. Not only did she not speak in public, but no one normally spoke to Mark that way. The object of the retort refused to be offended, however. He grinned and moved his fork out of her way.

"My humblest apologies, milady. I was only concerned about the health of one of my Housemates," he brought forth the formal language used between purebloods. If she was going to converse that way, so would he. "May I get you another plate?"

"No, that will not be required." She inclined her head, "I appreciate your concern, though it is unnecessary. I will not disgrace our House when our guests arrive."

"I never meant to imply you would. One as charming as you is not capable of such an action." His gaze flickered to the other boys and broke out in a grin as they burst out laughing.

"I fear we must continue this at another time, my dear. The minor purebloods are getting restless." He glared at his friends. Tania did not answer, but nodded and returned her attention to her plate. Hunter decided that he needed to scold her more often if that was the reaction he got. A commotion from across the room caught the attention of the Slytherins. A group of Ravenclaws were yelling about something idiotic. Hunter's gaze was drawn to a figure sitting just to the side of the argument. When Falon Dethart saw he had his brother's focus, he smirked. Raising his goblet, Falon saluted Hunter, a challenge and a taunt. The cruel smile that twisted his mouth sparked a fury in the Eldest brother. Unfortunately, a Professor interrupted the fight and he lost sight of Falon.

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