The five did not spend much time discussing what to do about Dobby. He was a free elf in all five worlds, and happy to be that way. They knew that it was unusual for an elf to remain unbonded to a family, but not entirely without precedent. Many of the Hogwarts elves were descended from elves who had lost their families to war or illness or other calamities. The castle was welcoming of them, and filled the void the elves felt from the loss of their bonds.

Seeker, Marigold, and Rose all spoke with Dobby, and he agreed to come if called. While he was not their elf, necessarily, he was thankful that they had taken the time to free him. It only proved that the great Harry Potter, sir, was truly a great wizard, of course. Each Dobby seemed to go to great lengths to let each of them know how great they really were, much to their amusement.

Chaser was also polite in thanking Dobby for his help, and offered to ask his father about bringing on a new house elf. He guessed - correctly - that James Potter would quickly warm to the idea of bonding with Dobby for the simple fact that it would infuriate Lucius Malfoy. If Dobby ever decided he wanted a home, he'd have one.

Spellforged, when asked, said that Dobby would probably form a loose bond with each of them, simply as a result of the way he had been freed. Such a bond could be turned into a family bond rather easily, or left alone. As long as Dobby remained happy and healthy, Spellforged was inclined to leave it be.

There was another dimension, however - one that only applied to Spellforged. The Goblin Nation did not bond with house elves in the same way that wizarding families did. There was no law against it, certainly not one that the Nation would follow. Rather, it was a matter of magic and custom. Goblin magic did not seem to be as beneficial to house elves as wizarding magic, and so the bond would be weaker to begin with. Goblin custom, meanwhile, did not allow for slavery or bound servitude in the absence of a crime, and a house elf bond was close enough to that definition to qualify.

Thus, Goblins who required the services of house elves hired them out from a wizarding firm that offered such services, or directed their clients to do so. If Dobby asked, Harry Spellforged could not accept him into his bonded service.

Dobby had looked crestfallen when Spellforged explained the situation. He had not asked to bond, but felt hurt that the great Harry Spellforged, sir, couldn't even consider it. His drooped ears and downcast gaze told the tale. To his surprise, Erik Sullivan figured it out before his older cousin.

"You're still part of our family, Dobby, even if this one" Erik hooked a thumb back at Spellforged. "can't hire you directly." He spoke in a soothing tone, hoping to calm the elf down.

"Little Master Sullivans?" Dobby asked, quietly, his questioning eyes focused on the first year.

Erik nodded. "You always have a place with Clan Sullivan."

Spellforged couldn't help but chuckle when Erik found himself getting hugged by a very grateful elf.

oOoOoOoOo

After the second years completed their Defense exam, Chaser stayed behind to speak with Professor Knight. She looked up from her marking and grumbled, though the corners of her mouth displayed her amusement. Without prompting, she opened a drawer and withdrew a small stack of parchment.

"Mister Potter," she said. "I didn't expect to be giving out additional homework to anyone outside of Ravenclaw."

Chaser gave her a grin. "My father wants to make sure I'm all caught up with where we should be, Professor. He's told me that I should plan for extra lessons this summer."

"I see," said Professor Knight, with a nod. She tapped her finger on the stack of lesson plans. "Well, as you requested, this should get you up to third year, including most of what we reviewed this term."

"That'll be perfect, Professor," Chaser replied. What he did not say was that the lessons were not for him, though he'd definitely participate. Rather, they were going to guide his counterparts in their summer work, for they had had much more time with Professor Lockhart than he had. While Professor Knight's classes had a structure and a firm plan, theirs had been largely scattered across the curriculum, with widely varying subjects taught by a rotating cast of aurors on injury leave.

As a way to spend a few hours each week, it was better than Lockhart. But as a way to prepare for their third year, it wasn't much at all. Spellforged wanted to change that, and these lessons would be a big help toward that goal.

The five had speculated as to whether Professor Knight had an analog in the other four worlds. It might be a challenge to find her, if she existed - perhaps she was married in other worlds, and thus had a different name, for example. Or, perhaps she had died long ago, for being an auror was not exactly without danger. Her parents, or even grandparents, may not have met at all. Rose pointed out the obvious alternative - that they may have met and had a son who followed a vastly different career path.

If the Defense professor in their third year was as lacking as the one for their second, then perhaps they would make an attempt at recruiting their own Professor Knight. After all, how many Transfiguration masteries had been handed out in the past fifty years? Certainly, not so many as to make a search of them impossible - especially for Gringott's.

After discussing the lessons themselves, and promising to send an owl with any questions, Chaser stood and prepared to leave.

"Thank you again, Professor, for everything" he said, sincerely. "I hope you have a pleasant holiday."

"As do I, Mister Potter."

The new voice surprised both professor and student. Turning, they saw the Headmistress standing in the doorway.

"If you are concerned about your Defence classes, don't be," Headmistress Dumbledore said as she walked into the classroom. "Professor Knight has agreed to remain as our Defense professor for another year." She was smiling pleasantly, the smile even reaching her eyes in a way that was both comforting and unsettling. Chaser couldn't put his finger on why the expression seemed off, somehow.

"Indeed," said Professor Knight, causing Chaser to turn back and look at her. Her tone had grown cold, a marked change from her light demeanor of just moments before. She did not look at Chaser as he turned, but kept her carefully neutral features focused on the Headmistress. "Mister Potter, I wish you well in your studies this summer. Now, if you'll excuse us…" Professor Knight trailed off as it became clear that Chaser had gotten the hint.

"Of course," he said with a nod. "Professor, Headmistress, good day." And with that, Chaser left as quickly as he could, not wanting to be in the middle of whatever this was.

Once he was gone, Professor Knight waved her wand at the classroom door, with slammed shut with a bang. A soft click told the women that it had been locked. It would not do to be interrupted.

"Headmistress," Professor Knight began, fighting to keep her voice even. "It is generally considered improper to announce the acceptance of a job offer you haven't even made yet."

Arianna Dumbledore stood at the front of the classroom, hands clasped behind her back, projecting an air of calm and nonchalance at odds with the growing anger of the younger woman sitting at the desk.

"I have every faith that you will accept, however. And Mister Potter does so look up to you." The Headmistress kept her tone light, yet filled with certainty. She had no doubt that what she said was the absolute truth.

Knight saw the trick, and pointed a finger at her employer. "Don't do that, I hate it when you do that." She shook her head. "Dad could never stand it when you asked forgiveness rather than permission, like you had a right to decide things for people."

"What happened between your father and I…" Dumbledore began, but Knight raised a hand and stopped her.

"No, I don't want to know. That's between you and him." She shook her head again, making her disappointment clear. "If these kids didn't need me here, I'd be in the wind, and it'd be on you to explain why."

The Headmistress gave a sigh of her own, but said nothing.

"I mean it, Headmistress. Take Mister Potter, for example." Knight gestured at the doorway. "He was in here getting extra lesson plans to work through over the summer, because everything he's seen in this classroom up to now has been so lacking. Merlin, he's had nine different professors, not counting me. Quirrell, Lockhart, and seven aurors. Want to explain what that does to a curriculum?"

Dumbledore looked weary, even as she conceded the point. "You are as eloquent as ever, Alexandria."

Knight scoffed. "You knew all of this, you had to, or else you wouldn't have brought me in."

"Perhaps," Dumbledore said. "Nevertheless, I'm glad you are here."

Professor Knight sighed, sitting back in her chair. "Love you too, Gran."

oOoOoOoOo

Rose agreed with Chaser when he suggested tracking down other versions of Professor Knight, if possible. Anyone would be better than Lockhart, she had said. Of course, she had said much the same about Quirrell too, so what would happen remained a mystery.

Surely, they would not go three years in a row with awful Defense professors. Right?

She had other things on her mind, however. Sirius Black had yet to be awarded with her guardianship.

It was impossible to determine, from letters alone, exactly what the delay was. The fact that she was of school age made things less urgent, as did the fact that she was not in imminent danger with her current guardians.

That factor was a frustrating one to Rose, for it told her that the request might have been more successful had Sirius been free to seek her guardianship years ago. Back then, she was in danger - indifference from her relatives, verbal abuse from Petunia and Vernon, the threat of being chased by Dudley's gang, it all added up to a case for removing her from the home. Now that those were no longer a problem, it put less onus on the Ministry to make a change.

Add in the fact that Albus Dumbledore was the one who placed her there in the first place, and the result was a complete lack of anyone willing to move the request along.

On the other side of the galleon, you have the recently exonerated Lord Black as the one making the request. He is her godfather, and has a stable home. He has reports and parchments from Saint Mungo's attesting to his fitness to be a guardian for a teenaged witch. Obviously, he has the resources to adequately care for such a child. Most importantly, he was not assigned custody in 1981 solely due to the Ministry's screw-up.

His request for guardianship would never be declined outright. But neither would it be acted upon quickly. All in all, it was a frustrating mess.

Daphne and Astoria had attempted to distract her with talk of summer plans. During that conversation, the idea of a summer trip came up. This brought to mind a discussion she had had with Spellforged some weeks prior, and the quick trip back to the Chamber of Secrets that followed.

"What would you say," Rose began, "if I asked you about Salazar Slytherin's ancestral home?"

Daphne raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Astoria shrugged, a puzzled look on her face.

"Slytherin grew up in Ireland," Astoria replied. "We don't know where he went after he left Hogwart's."

Rose smiled at them.

"Rose Potter, what do you know that we don't?" asked Daphne. She clearly was struggling to keep her voice down, and mostly succeeding.

"Oh," answered Rose. "Let's just say that Gairsay Island, in the north of Scotland, is beautiful during the summer." She grinned at the sisters, both of whom were shocked at what she was implying. This caused Rose to chuckle at their reaction. "So," she continued. "Think your father will be up for taking us on a little trip?"

oOoOoOoOo

"Harry?"

Spellforged looked up from his notebook, and saw a worried Luna Lovegood standing before him. The common room was mostly empty, with exams being mostly finished. Even the small library area - usually one of the more popular spots in Ravenclaw tower - was free of students.

Something in Luna's body language was telling Spellforged that there was a problem, though he had no idea what it might be. Closing his book, he stood.

"What's wrong, Luna?"

"I can't find Astoria," she said, simply.

Harry frowned. "I haven't seen her come through the common room," he remarked. Seeing Cho Chang sitting on a nearby couch, Harry walked over. He did not know her well, apart from being aware of the fact that she was their house team's seeker, but generally they seemed to get along. "Cho, have you seen Astoria, by any chance?"

Cho looked up from the textbook she was reading. "I think she went with her sister to the hospital wing," she said.

"Harry," said Luna, drawing his attention. "We should go down there." There was an unmistakable urgency to her voice, now.

"Right," he agreed. "Thanks, Cho." The third year nodded, her eyes already back on her book.

When Spellforged and Luna got to the hospital wing, they saw that a bed at the end of the infirmary had been curtained off. Not seeing Madam Pomfrey, the ravenclaws stood a moment in the doorway, unsure as to how to proceed. A quiet sob to their right drew their attention.

Daphne Greengrass was sitting in a chair in the waiting area, quietly sobbing.

"Daphne?" Spellforged asked, quietly. The blonde slytherin turned to look at them, and he saw that her eyes were red. Walking over, Harry took the seat next to her, with Luna seating herself on Daphne's other side. "Daphne, what happened?" he asked again.

He was not sure what surprised him more - the fact that Daphne immediately hugged him, or the fact that she was sobbing into his shoulder as she did so.

"Breathe," he said, as Luna rubbed her back in an attempt to calm her down. "Just breathe," he said again. She did calm down, after a while, but Harry could tell that asking questions would just set her off again.

At the far end of the infirmary, Spellforged saw a tall, blonde woman walk out of the partitioned area, her hand on her face. She stood next to an empty bed on the other side of the room, obviously attempting to pull herself together. After a moment, a man joined her, and they hugged for a minute, supporting each other. Harry recognized the man as Lord Daniel Greengrass, which made the witch his wife and Daphne's mother.

The fact that Astoria's parents had been summoned just raised more questions in Harry's mind. A glance to Luna told him that she was thinking the same thing.

When the Greengrasses returned to the partitioned area, another figure emerged - and this person's presence was as much a surprise as anything, though perhaps it should not have been.

Erik Sullivan, looking exhausted, made his way over to the waiting area. Daphne looked up as he approached, and Harry saw a glimmer of hope in her eyes. He also saw the subtle shake of Erik's head as he sat down across from his friend's sister.

"She's asleep, finally." Erik said.

"Good," murmured Daphne. "I don't think she's slept in three nights."

Luna spoke then, for the first time since they had entered the infirmary. "It happened, didn't it?"

Daphne nodded, before choking back another sob. Now it was Luna giving her a hug, and Daphne - the proper, stoic older sister - losing all composure.

Spellforged looked at Erik, who rubbed his eyes tiredly.

"It's not my place, Harry," he began, but Daphne's look silenced him.

"Go ahead and tell him," she said, in a sad, quiet voice.

Erik sighed, before taking a deep breath and steeling himself to deliver the news. "The Greengrass family was afflicted with a blood curse, Harry." Just the words, blood curse, were chilling, and Harry could see that it pained Erik to talk of it. His aunt, Harry's adoptive mother, was a curse breaker, after all. Both boys knew from a young age how nasty some curses could be, and how enduring.

A blood curse on a family line? The idea of it was chilling.

The Greengrass family, Spellforged thought to himself. Rose had talked about her plans to visit what she hoped was Salazar Slytherin's ancestral home - a trip that Astoria insisted on joining. That conversation was yesterday - there was no way Astoria would not have been exhibiting symptoms if she were hit by a curse.

"Tell me," he said, simply. Daphne looked at him, her expression unreadable. She had not heard Harry take charge, before, and was unsure what his reaction meant.

Erik looked unsure. "I don't know the details," he began. His eyes went to Daphne, as if asking for help. Harry followed the look, and saw Daphne's blue eyes meeting his own.

Harry's expression softened. "Daphne, my mother is a cursebreaker, as you know," he began. She nodded, hesitantly. "You also know that my father has more than a few connections. If there is anyone in the world who knows about this curse, and how to cure it or mitigate it or neutralize its effects, then he can have them here before you can read off his titles."

"I don't know the specific curse," Daphne said quietly. "I know it targets the women of the Greengrass family, and that it usually hits a witch when she is in her twenties." She shook her head, wiping another tear away. "We knew she was at risk, we both were. Merlin, I thought we'd have more time." Her shoulders shook once more, and the sobs came again.

Luna folded the slytherin into her arms. Her eyes met Harry's, and he received the message loud and clear. Help her.

As Luna worked to calm Daphne, Harry looked at Erik. His cousin, unprompted, gave him a nod. He had seen Harry working out a particularly tough problem, and it frequently involved him closing his eyes and thinking things through. If any problem required Harry's full attention, this was it.

With a nod in acknowledgement, Spellforged closed his eyes and reached out to the link.

Does anyone have a sick Astoria Greengrass in their hospital wing? He asked without preamble or prelude.

As he expected, the mention of her friend's sister got Rose's attention immediately. She's fine, was the reply. She sat with us at dinner.

Did she have an appetite? Has she been sleeping? Spellforged pressed the issue, knowing that any detail might be important.

What happened? Seeker asked. Of the five, he was probably closer to his Daphne than the others, second only to Rose, of course.

My Astoria Greengrass is in the infirmary with some sort of blood curse, Spellforged explained. Daphne said that it follows the female line of the Greengrass family, and that it usually manifests later in life. That it hit her Astoria was a shock from which she is still recovering. He considered that a moment. Why her?

It's a blood curse, replied Chaser. It doesn't pick and choose its victims.

Maybe, Spellforged replied.

It depends on the curse, came Marigold's voice. Spellforged could hear the serious tone, even across the link. It was the same voice she had used when she was fighting to save Ginny - the sort of voice that brooked no argument.

What do you mean? Asked Seeker.

It's a lot like a disease, Marigold explained. Sometimes people are born with diseases, or with the potential to have a disease, and never get it for whatever reason. That part of them just never turns on and makes them sick. Maybe the blood curse is like that. For Rose's Astoria, the galleon came up heads, but for Spellforged's, it came up tails and she got sick.

Footsteps pulled Spellforged out of the link, and he opened his eyes. Erik, familiar with his 'meditation', had ignored him, but Daphne had given him a curious look. Luna, of course, knew that he was having a conversation, and kept her focus on Daphne.

Lord and Lady Greengrass walked up. Without saying a word, Daphne stood up and went to them, wrapping both in a hug.

Harry did his best not to listen, but the words "I thought we had more time," scared him.

When he saw Lord Greengrass step away from his wife and daughter, Spellforged stood up and went to him.

"Heir Potter," Lord Greengrass greeted him formally, the fatigue in his voice plain.

Harry nodded in response. "Lord Greengrass," he replied. Stepping closer, he lowered his voice. "If I can be of any help, give the word."

Lord Greengrass looked at him, appraisingly. "This is my daughter, Mister Spellforged," he said. "I am not so proud as to ignore such an offer. The word is given, sir."

"Good," Harry replied. "I'll contact my father, and ask him if he has any suggestions." He nods toward Erik, who seems to have fallen asleep out of exhaustion. Harry realized, in that moment, that he had no idea how long Erik had been at Astoria's side. "My cousin's aunt, and my adoptive mother, happens to be a world-class curse breaker with Gringott's. With your permission, I'd like to seek her counsel as well."

"Of course," Lord Greengrass replied. "We've spoken to curse breakers over the years, but they always seem to find nothing when the curse doesn't show up in a generation."

"My mother tells me that there is no such thing as too much information," Spellforged said. "Any detail, no matter how insignificant, might be the one that provides the vital clue."

Daphne's father nodded. "I'll get everything together for you." He reached out to shake Harry's hand, holding it in a firm grip. "We're placing a lot of trust in you, Mister Spellforged."

Harry could do little more than nod. "I can't promise we'll be successful, sir, I want you to know that." His eyes met Daniel's, and the older man's expression showed that he understood. "But this I promise you - we will do everything we can to help."

oOoOoOoOo

The next morning, Seeker found Daphne Greengrass sitting in an alcove near Ravenclaw Tower.

It was the same spot Rose had told him about, after learning of it from her version of Daphne. Since then, he had met his Daphne here and at the matching window on the other side of the castle, where they could watch the sunset.

They were still circumspect about their friendship, not wanting to give some of the more unsavory elements of her house any reason to cause trouble. But when they did get a chance to talk, both welcomed the conversation.

Today was no different, for the most part. Once Seeker had confirmed that Astoria was taking the opportunity to sleep in, and was doing so in her dorm, he moved the conversation on to lighter topics.

His Astoria was, to all appearances, healthy and whole.

Talk quickly moved to summer plans, as it tended to do this close to the end of term. Here, Seeker managed to surprise the normally composed slytherin.

"Neville Longbottom is hosting a birthday party for the both of us," Harry said, not mentioning that it was the second time such a party was planned, since Daphne had not been there last year.

"Oh?" was her only reply, the raised eyebrow and slight smile his only hint that she was amused.

"Indeed," he replied. Catching her look, he decided to try and make her laugh. "Heiress Greengrass, if I were to send an invitation to your home, would it be well received?"

Daphne smirked, but had the grace to nod. "It would, Heir Potter."

"Excellent," he said, offering her an exaggerated bow. "In that case, I will eagerly await your formal reply."

He resisted the urge to pump his fist in victory when she burst out laughing. Instead, he just laughed with her.

oOoOoOoOo

Marigold Potter walked into the hospital wing with two missions.

The first, and easiest, was to see if Astoria Greengrass happened to be present. If she had gotten ill as well, she would still be down here, as Spellforged's Astoria had been since the previous day. If not, then they had another healthy (or presumably healthy) Astoria, which was all to the good.

To her relief, there was no Astoria to be seen.

Spellforged's passion for the issue of the blood curse was puzzling to her, at first. Then he mentioned that his cousin Erik was close to her, and had sat with her before her parents arrived. There was no surer way to get Spellforged working than to involve his cousin.

Marigold felt the tone of Spellforged's thoughts whenever his cousin came up. Erik Sullivan was as close to a little brother as any of them would ever have. It made sense that Spellforged would be protective of him - and of anyone close to him.

Her second mission was related to the first, but only just. It had been on her mind for a while now, ever since she had spent that night in the infirmary on Halloween, a lifetime ago. After she had incinerated a man in the great hall. The attack on Ginny Weasley, and her subsequent attempts to revive her, only cemented in her mind a decision that she hadn't realized she had made.

The appearance of the Shield of Gryffindor puzzled her brothers (and probably Rose as well, though she understood more than the others, given her experience with the Blade of Slytherin). To Marigold, however, it just reinforced her own identity. She had no desire to fight, to attack, to slay. She felt protective, defensive. The shield suited her in a way no sword could.

Thus, her other mission today.

"Miss Potter?"

Marigold turned to see Madam Pomfrey standing in the doorway. "Hello, Madam Pomfrey," she greeted the medi-witch. "Do you have a moment?"

Madam Pomfrey eyed her, wondering what was wrong. "Of course, my dear, let's go to my office." With that, she led the gryffindor through a side door.

Once both witches were seated, the medi-witch leaned back in her chair. "What can I do for you, Miss Potter?"

"Well," Marigold began, her nerves threatening to get the better of her. Then her thoughts went to Astoria - an Astoria she had never met, true, but a sick friend of a cousin of a brother nonetheless. Steeling herself, she looked Madam Pomfrey in the eye.

"Electives are due soon," she said. "And I don't know what to pick."

Pomfrey tilted her head. "What do you mean?" she asked.

Marigold took a deep breath. "What do I take if I want to be a healer?"


A/N: Thus ends Year Two. Quite a few fun moments here, and some not-so-fun but necessary ones too. The less said the better, as the chapter speaks for itself in most respects. Plenty of threads to pick up later, I think.

I will mention one point that always bothered me - the blood curse on Astoria Greengrass. It's one of the few bits of canon that applies to the younger sister, and it infuriates me. For a character in whom I see so much potential (particularly here), she essentially gets wizard cancer to give Draco the sads. It's aggravating. But, it's canon, and how our five deal with it - and how they use their link to do so - will be interesting.

This story has passed 500 favorites, and approaches 750 follows. This story started off a year ago, and now we're two books and fifty chapters into this journey - a fact that still amazes me. Thank you all for your support and feedback.