A/N: Do not own. AU/ non-canon. Alexis' surname is Mondheiler. Vowels look the same at four am, I swear. Anyway. Severus and Alexis have an argument that leads to a shocking revelation. And Alexis catches a student (three guesses who) out-of-bounds. Although not...graphic in nature, there is much about anorexia here. A description, though non-detailed and brief, on an anorexic's appearance as well as weight numbers. In kilos. So that is my only warning. It is not particularly triggering, I don't believe, but it could be to someone. And there is swearing. Lots of swearing. Because when adults are scared or frustrated or have no better answer, well they swear. That is all. X's are scene breaks, serious time breaks are noted in bold. Italics are often thoughts, but occasionally emphases on a word. As always, reviews make me happy. And finally, use your words.

~Case

-x-

Several things happened at once. Tim and Severus both cursed darkly, standing as one. Remus caught the younger woman as she slumped forward and Filius took her wrist, quickly finding her pulse. It took a moment for Severus to shoo away the three women, dark eyes watching Tim crouch in front of Alexis' chair. "Well?" He snarled, concern evident in his tone. This was the second time the young woman had passed out in his company. He was feeling quite...useless.

"Remus, calm your partner." Tim ordered, one hand on Alexis' wrist and the other on her chest. The younger man obeyed, making sure that Alexis was secure before moving to wrap Severus in a hug. Filius was quiet, his eyes narrowed in thought. She had truly blacked out but there was no clear cause. Her body was weak from exhaustion and lack of food, but her heart and lungs were strong. Tim sighed, sending a bit of magic through her veins. "What do you make of this, Filius?" He asked finally, his voice soft.

"Hogwarts' magic is too strong for her body to handle while conscientious. Albus fainted the first time he fully took on the wards, with sleep and time his body adjusted to the amount of magic. But he never made oaths to the castle. It seems that Alexis is channeling more magic than Albus ever did." Filius commented quietly, brown eyes surveying the younger woman. "Albus used to take in large quantities of sugar, partly because of addiction. But he also once mentioned that it kept his mind alert. I think the sugar helped him when the castle's magic became overwhelming." He added slowly, turning the thoughts over in his mind. Hogwarts was channeling magic through the Headmistress, who would die for her students. But the school would never harm her, intentionally.

"Alexis does not eat willingly. Forcing her to intake any amount of sugar would be...disastrous. I do have a potion that might mitigate some of the pressure of the wards, but I cannot be sure." Severus remarked quietly, dark eyes locked on the younger woman.

Tim gave a quick nod, focusing completely on the headmistress. Conscientiousness was slowly starting to return to her, he was not sure, however, if her body would return to a true sleep or if she would rejoin them much sooner. It took a few minutes but her eyes finally fluttered open.

"Whaa?" She mumbled, trying to push herself up. She was in a reclining chair, oddly enough. Her armchair didn't recline but she didn't remember moving. She frowned when the chair changed back to its original state, gray eyes darting from face to face. Tim was crouched in front of her, two fingers on her wrist. "What happened?" She grimaced, fighting down the pain that shot through her body. It took a moment but it faded. Her eyes took in the shimmer of magic that cloaked the room, brighter and more visible than it normally was. She blinked quickly, letting her eyes adjust to the new levels of visible magic. Visible to her, at least.

"You blacked out. Do you know where you are, Alexis?" Tim asked calmly, finally moving into the nearest chair. His muscles were stiff but it was nothing that he wasn't used to.

"My quarters at Hogwarts. We were having a meeting about the children who had just arrived and I...Oh. The wards." She replied, realization dawning suddenly.

"What about the wards?" Tim glanced at Filius, meeting the older man's eyes. So he was right then.

"They strengthened and I accepted them. Her magic grows and changes, depending on need." Alexis shrugged, reaching for her cup of tea. Merlin was she tired!

Severus snorted. It was just like the younger woman to blow it off like it was nothing. Well, that wouldn't do! "You have passed out twice in the last two weeks, Alexis. That we know of. Channeling enormous amounts of magic might cause such black outs, but it is not just the magic and you know it." He barked, raising an eyebrow at the younger woman who was now glaring at him. He invented that glare, she couldn't frighten him. Except she had and he hated to admit it. He had become quite attached in the last few years. She was his sister and this was not healthy, even if it was quite...hypocritical.

Grey eyes flashed, darting quickly around the room. This was not the time or place to have this argument, granted all those present already knew. But no one understood or knew how bad it really was except for Severus and she would not allow him to spill her secrets in front of Tim. She'd never hear the end of it! "It is not important now, Severus. I'm fine." She growled finally, locking eyes with him. Remus was gazing between the two of them, as if he just knew that they were going to fight. And Filius had returned to a pile of paperwork that he had offered to do, she did have too much of it to finish alone. But Severus just met her gaze calmed, sneering at her. Hmpf.

"It is not fine." He snapped. "It will kill you, Alexis. "

She growled at him angrily. "It will not. Drop it. Now." Came the bitter snarl.

"No. You may be the Headmistress, but I am older and your deputy. It's killing you." He snapped. Severus was quite aware the three sets of eyes were moving between the two of them, following this argument. This fight. They did not fight normally, especially not publicly. But this was not really public. This was family. Filius who had suffered through constant bickering dinners, although it was the man's own fault for inviting them both to dine in his quarters. Remus who had grown to accept and then love Alexis as family. And Tim. The man who had helped both of them find themselves in the darkest of times. He too was family. He also knew that they were not quite following the argument, although Alexis knew exactly what he meant. He did not mean the magic of the castle, not at all. No, the castle was probably helping Alexis, instead of harming her. For as much as Hogwarts needed Alexis, Alexis needed Hogwarts. And she needed them. Even if she hated him for it, which she might, she needed her family. And they were her family.

"Get it through your thick skull. I. Am. FINE!" Alexis scowled darkly, steel eyes dark with anger. She had a right to be angry, of course. It was her personal life. Even if she thought of all four of these men as her family, even if they might not feel the same, this was her life. Her secret. It was none of their damn business.

"Oh? Then remove your glamours." Severus retorted silkily. She wasn't going to get out of this. She could not out Slytherin him.

Fuck. "I'm fine!" She snapped, crossing her arms and standing quickly. She wavered briefly as the room span. A warm hand steadied her. She turned cold eyes on Tim, glaring at the healer but he did not let go. Which might have been a good thing. She was quite...dizzy. Damn.

Tim frowned. Something else was going on here, besides the obvious. He knew that Severus was not talking about the magic, but he was a bit...confused. He should have known if the young woman was wearing glamours. His healing spells could detect it. Granted, he had not cast anything other than a standard diagnostic spell one the younger woman just yet. He still needed to do a full work up on her, but the students this afternoon had taken a bit out of all of them. He had been planning to wait until tomorrow. Perhaps it was better to do it today, he had worked with much more exhaustion, after all. "Glamours?" He asked calmly. Both had returned to glaring at each other but Severus gave him a slight nod. Just what was Alexis hiding?

"If you are fine, you will remove them." Severus retorted quietly. He was not even quite aware of what the younger woman looked like underneath them anymore. He had seen them flicker once or twice in the last few weeks, but that was all.

Alexis growled, desperately needing to pace. But she was not stupid enough to try. If standing made her dizzy, what would pacing do? She didn't need to faint again. She had yet to faint in front of them, but she had been fainting on a semi-regular bases. She blamed it on lack of sleep, but perhaps that was just her excuse. What was there to lose, really? Besides her freedom to do what she wanted with her body. But Merlin, she was exhausted and this argument was wearing. "Fine!" She snarled finally. "If that's what you want. There is nothing wrong with me!" She added with a hiss. But she knew that once the glamours were gone, she could no longer deny it. She had not even seen herself recently. She knew that before the last three weeks, she had looked rather...bad. But now? Even with a little help from Hogwarts, the magic of the wards, she probably still looked...horrible. She hid it from more than just them though. She hid it from herself. She didn't want to admit that she wasn't doing well and she didn't want to see the face that looked back at her. Even with the glamours she was near gaunt and pale. Without them...who knew.

"If either of us really believe that, we would not be having this conversation." Severus replied quietly, dark eyes fixed on the younger woman. Something was...wrong. Her eyes had taken on a haunted, almost scared look. Something he had only seen a few times before. And then the thought struck, one that he hoped desperately was untrue. What if she has been hiding from herself? How could it get that bad without any of us noticing.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, searching inside her magical core for the origins of the spells that held the deeply in-woven glamours up, even in sleep. She slowly removed them, one by one. And instantly felt her body stabilize. The constant glamours had been draining her energy and magic. What she had been doing to protect herself had actually been doing much harm. She kept her eyes closed even as the last charm fell. The quiet gasps were enough, she didn't need to see their looks of disgust.

"Fuck, Alexis." Severus murmured softly, his eyes quickly scanning over the young woman's body before returning to her face. She wasn't just thin, she wasn't just tired. She was sick. Truly sick. But even as he spoke, a bit of colour returned to her face and she gave the tiniest of smiles, with a soft murmur that he didn't quite catch. But he understood. Hogwarts could not feed her or force her to sleep, but She could very well help heal the young woman by giving her bits of magic stored over thousands of years. Bits of healing magic that would return just a bit of her energy, her life force. But it would be enough to keep her alive and steady on her feet.

"How long, Alexis?" Tim asked quietly. This had not happened over night. The girl was anorexic, yes, but one did not become like this over night. He gently pushed her back into her chair, his wand already in his hand as he started to muttered soft string of Latin. The deeper, more personal spells he would do later, when there was a bit more privacy for the young woman. But it was necessary for him to know now whether or not her organs had started to shut down. Poppy's file had said that the younger woman was not anemic, but that was far from true. She was severely underweight. Without her robes, he was sure they would have been able to count every single on of her ribs. Her bones were knobby and her skin hung tight to them. Dark shadows were around her eyes and her cheeks jaunted out. A simple weight and height spell, although he did prefer traditional scales as they tended to be just as accurate but more visible, told him numbers that he hoped he would not see from this young woman ever again. And yet here they were. She was back to the weight she had been when she had started her apprenticeship with him, but perhaps this time would be easier. She was surrounded by family, which meant help and support.

"A year, perhaps. I do not know, Tim. This last year was a bit of a disaster for everyone, with the last of the 'war' and everything else. How bad?" She murmured, finally opening dull grey eyes. She knew it was not good, of course, but she didn't know how bad. She was surprised though. Instead of disappointment, all she saw on the faces of these men was worry. She had hidden it well, she knew, and she had interfered, as much as she could, with all diagnostic spells cast on her. But now...she had a school to run. And she couldn't do that if she could not make it through the day without fainting. Her students needed her. That resolved her will, right then, to do as much as she could to change this, so that her students did not see a sickly woman without any real authority. They didn't need that. They needed someone they could trust, someone who could take care of and teach them, and damn it she would be that someone.

"More than Nora and Harry, but not by much." Tim replied dryly, frowning at the latest results. Her magic, and that of the castle, must have been protecting her organs and bones. Although her weight was low, she was malnourished and anemic, he organs were not yet failing. If she had kept up the facade, however, she would have been dead by the end of the year, the end of the next at the latest. She weight more than two twelve year olds, children who had been starved all their lives because of their magic, but that wasn't saying much. Both children were underweight. He could see Severus' nutrition potions seeing much use this summer. "Number wise? Forty kilos. To be healthy you need to gain at least 20 kilos. If you lose much more weight, your organs will shut down." He added quietly.

"They haven't already?" Severus asked finally, frowning slightly. That was...odd. She was 40 kilos and 170 cm which was quite...small. Her body shouldn't be functioning at all. Oh, how he loved magic.

Alexis closed her eyes briefly and sighed. She had been that small before, when she first met Tim. But that had been the product of several years of starvation. When she had started at Hogwarts, she had been underweight but she had managed to get to within a kilo or two of where she was supposed to be. And now...well now she was far from a kilo. Damn it.

"You need food and sleep. Sleep will probably come first." Tim remarked quietly, glancing around the room. They all needed some time to come to terms with this and the men could clearly do some of the paperwork so that she could sleep. A few hours of sleep and then a light meal followed by more sleep...they could do that for a day or two. They would have to. She would collapse of exhaustion in another day, starvation in probably less. "No arguments."

Alexis merely nodded, pointing at a stack of papers. It rose shakily and flew to Remus, as another stack started to fly at Filius. She was tired and her magic was not as strong as it should be, as it normally was. She wasn't going to fight with Tim, she didn't have the energy. She opened her eyes again, turning soft grey eyes to meet dark orbs. "I'm sorry." She whispered softly, though it carried throughout the room. And she was. She hadn't meant to harm anyone or upset anyone. She had just been...not hungry. But that was something to discuss with Tim later. Although it was clearly anorexia, there could also be other factors there. Important ones.

Severus scoffed softly. "As am I. You are part of our family, Alexis. We will take care of you, even if you wish we didn't. We aren't going anywhere." His comment was gentle, stern. He meant every word. Every person in this room cared about her, in different ways. Filius had become a bit of an adoptive father to all three of them, Tim an older, eccentric uncle. They would help her, as long as she let them in.

She smiled softly and closed her eyes. The next moment she was being lifted gently out of her chair and carried easily into her bed chambers. She snuggled against Tim for a moment, letting the darkness take over, surrendering to true, peaceful sleep.

-x-

Four days later.

Alexis surveyed the Great Hall for a moment, eyes going up and down the long table that they were all sitting at. With the Professors, healers, and the few summer camp counselors who had arrived, the rest would be here in a week, the student to adult ratio was nearly one to one. In the last few days they have had a few more students brought back to the school. Of the fifteen worse causes, ten had been brought back in total. The other five were staying with friends or visiting relatives, in little to no danger at the moment but instructed to contact the school immediately if something happened as well as each given a portkey. Seven others had shown a need, so a total of eighteen students, if they counted Harry with eighteen adults, counting Hagrid. Since the man was in charge of supervising some outside play and all access to the lake, but warned explicitly to not introduce the children to any creatures, no matter how innocent or cute they might be, she did have to count him. There would be more counselors, of both the mind-healing and summer camp type, arriving in a few days. As they were still doing home visits, where some of her staff were currently, actually, there was always a chance for more children to arrive. She had already spoken to each child under her care, when Tim had finally given the okay. She had not liked staying in her bed with no work for three days. But she had slept the majority of it and he had started her eating again. After, of course, discovering a curse that she had been unaware of. Left over from when Albus had saved her. Now that she was hungry and felt like sleeping, well... like doing everything again, it was just a battle with slightly disordered thoughts. She could manage. She would. She had a school to run after all.

-x-

The camp would officially start in a few days but they had already given rules to all of the children that morning. Simple rules, like no wandering alone and always telling an adult where they were going. The three counselors currently in residence were suppose to be keeping an eye on the children at all times. The two sixteen year olds, for there were two of them, both with younger siblings, had been drafted to help. The counselors rooms were attached to the students, connected by a door to a room of bunks, a true camp experience, and four-poster beds, for the older students, so that they could help with nightmares or sooth fears. With the help of some of the Professors who had offered, surprisingly enough, to be counselors, there should not have been any child out after curfew. Pomona and Charity were not scary, until they were protecting children, of course, but most children would not cross the two kindly ladies. The two counselors for the younger boys were late twenties, 'cool' and good role models. Apprentices or in the first few years of social work and counseling. A good experience for all the camp counselors, something they needed for their resumes, and a job that all of them had been excited for. Working with child was something all of them, she had made sure, wanted to do. She knew for a fact that they had done bed-checks for all the boys an hour before and everyone had been there. So which child had the guts to sneak out? And to the Astronomy Tower of all places! Alexis moved silently up the last few steps, pausing briefly in the dark shadows. She wanted to see who the child was before she entered the tower.

Harry sat on one of the walls, a bit difficult to clamber up on but he had managed. Severus and Remus said that he could entire sleep in their quarters or join those for the camp. He had never been to camp before and although they had told him that he could attend where ever he slept, he had wanted to try it. Surprisingly enough, he missed home. Home. A word he never thought he would associate with anything other than Hogwarts. But he did. Home was the place where Severus and Remus bickered over whether chocolate was a breakfast food (it was) or whether football was better than Quidditch (it so wasn't). Home was the place where he felt safe, the place where his nightmares came but weren't so scary. A place were no one would harm him. He liked Charlie and Phil, the two current counselors for the boys, and he knew that he shouldn't be scared of either of them. But men had been nice before. People had been nice before and then they had hurt him. Or sent him back to Uncle. And he knew that Severus and Remus would never let him be sent back, but what if these men did not know that? What if they thought he was a freak, which he was, like uncle had? What if they realized the truth? It was a lot of what ifs and one of the older boys, Jim, had said that while what ifs were all nice and dandy, they weren't solid. They weren't ands, they were ifs. Which had been confusing but Lexie had explained it to them, sort of. He understood it now, that it meant that ifs were actually, but they could be. They just weren't yet. Lexie had added a lot of confusing things to that too, but that was what he had taken from it. And they wanted them to talk. Charlie and Paul did, as did the healers. But Tim had said that he would stay his healers and that he could still speak with the counselors if he wanted to. He wasn't sure that he wanted to. He didn't like the sharing circle they did earlier. It was so...embarrassing. But at least he wasn't the youngest! Lila was, she was only eleven. Harry sighed, kicking his feet back against the castle. It was so calm out here, it made nightmares carry less power.

Alexis frowned slightly, taking in the mop of inky Hair. If she was correct, she was certain that the child was Harry. And he was...the child had lost his mind. There were wards around the tower, of course, but some were old and if they faltered, not that they would, he would fall off! Damn child shouldn't be sitting on the wall. The wall was to keep them on the castle. And if he moved his bottom forward a few inches, he would be outside the ward that ran through the wall. Damn it. Her wand was instantly in her hand and she softly chanted in Latin, expanding the castle's ward, in case any other child was foolish enough to climb on the walls, and forming a protective ward around the child and a sticking charm so that when she spoke, he wouldn't fall off if he was startled. There were wards, of course, that kept people from falling and jumping from the tower, but that didn't mean they didn't fall. They could, they just would be transported into a warded room in the hospital wing. But if they were outside the wards...they would die. He shouldn't even be able to get up there! His head was hardly higher than the wall. "It is a pleasure to see you again, Mr. Potter, but you are out-of-bounds." Alexis purred, striding out into the open. The child jumped, or tried to. But the sticking spell on his trousers kept him firmly attached to the wall.

"Professor!" Harry grimaced, looking down and then automatically looking away. Down was far away and it was a bit dizzying.

"Mr. Potter, there is a sticking spell currently on you, as you were sitting outside the wards on the castle. It should not have allowed you up there to begin with. However, I would like to bring you off the wall. May I?" Alexis asked dryly, frowning slightly at the thought. The wards shouldn't have let the boy pass them and he shouldn't have been able to cancel them out. She found her mental link to the castle and checked the wards of the tower. They had been lowered...by McGonagall. As Deputy, she had that power. Damn woman. She sent her magic out once more, rechecking all of the wards. She had checked the castle wards the other day and they had all seemed fine, but she had done it en-mass. She quickly checked each individual ward on every part of the castle, the gate and doors included, raising the wards on all of the towers back up and fixing a few weakened wards. She had gotten much faster at raising and checking the wards, but it still took her a few minutes. Minutes where the child merely stared at her. "Mr. Potter?"

"You may, professor." Harry replied softly, staring at the stone floor of the tower. Here was yet another example of the weirdness. The professors were so confused, uncle would say. They didn't treat him like they should. Even though the professor wasn't happy with him, she didn't seem really angry and he knew that she wouldn't hurt him. Plus she was asking before she touched him and people who wanted to hurt him wouldn't ask.

Alexis gave a brisk nod, striding forward and plucking the child of the wall while removing the sticking spell. She was wearing a glamour, of course, but not as intensive as before and she had not cast it. Tim had agreed to help her out, so that the children wouldn't see how weak their professor was. The underweight child, while normally would not have been difficult to lift, was. Once she had him away from the wall, she automatically set him down, but gripped his shoulder briefly. "If I ever catch you on that wall again Mr. Potter, or on any tower wall or ledge, you will not be a happy boy. Do I make myself clear?" She asked sternly, looking into deep green eyes.

Harry dropped his eyes with a rapid nod. "Yes ma'am." He murmured softly.

"Good boy."

His eyes snapped up, shock. He was breaking the rules and she still thought he was good? Adults were crazy here.

She gave the child a small smile, crouching so that she was on his level. "Let me be clear, Harry. I do not want you to be on this tower alone. I am happy with your agreement to stay off the walls. Do you understand why I do not want you climbing of these walls and ledges? And why you are not suppose to be on this tower, or most of the others, alone?" She asked gently, placing her fingers under his chin so that he had to meet her eyes. Her hand still rested on his shoulder. She wasn't really angry at the child. Unhappy that he would do something so dangerous, but not angry. It was, however, to be expected. She knew that all of the children this summer would be pushing them and testing boundaries, because many of them had never had any reasonable boundaries or adults who actually cared for them.

Harry hesitated, thinking it over. He wasn't really sure why she was upset that he had been on the walls. It was dangerous, perhaps, without the wards. But why would anyone care if he did something dangerous. Severus and Remus did, of course, or they said they did anyway. But why should she? There were more important people here than him. "It was dangerous?" He said finally.

"Yes, Harry. It was dangerous for you to be on the wall. You could have fallen and you would have been severely harmed or killed. This tower is dangerous because it is far away from the closest person for help. You could easily get hurt and no one would know. You aren't allowed up here alone for your safety. I know you might not believe this Harry, but many people, including me, care greatly about you. Many people would be devastated if something happened to you, and all because you were doing something so careless. Rules are there for a reason. If you do not understand them, ask." Alexis replied firmly, easily hiding her rage at the shock in the child's eyes. That muggle would pay for his treatment of this child, as would all the guardians of those children in her care. No child should doubt his worth.

When she said it like that, it made him feel bad. He didn't mean to worry anyone. He just wanted air, to be outside. It helped him calm down. "I won't do it again, Professor." He whispered softly, wishing that he didn't have to meet her eyes. Those grey eyes were very haunting sometimes.

He probably would, but hopefully not at night. "Was there a reason you came here, Harry?" She asked with a raised eyebrow. There better be, or he'd have a different punishment.

"Yes, professor. It...I wanted to go outside. It's...calming." Harry replied softly, looking away.

Ah. Nightmares then. "The next time, Harry, wake one of your counselors or guardians. Let an adult know and perhaps they will go outside with you so that you are not breaking the rules." Alexis remarked, still sternly but softer. "Now then, it is time for me to walk you back to the camp quarters. Unless you rather sleep in your quarters?" She questioned, motioning the child toward the stairwell.

"No, Professor. I don't want to wake them. Camp's okay." Harry gulped, staring down at his feet. He didn't want her to wake Severus or Remus, he knew they'd be angry at him. She had released his shoulder with a final squeeze and he hesitantly started toward the stairs.

Alexis stood from her crouch, moving quickly so that she was beside the child instead of behind him. She had caught that brief flash of hesitation. It was a silent trip down the stairs and back to the third floor. She stopped outside the door to the common room for the camp. "Now, Mr. Potter. As for your punishment, and no, I didn't forget, I want an essay on why you should follow the rules, as well as any rules you do not understand. Do you think you can do that?" She asked briskly, looking down at the small child.

"Yes, professor. When?" Harry asked, staring down at the ground.

"In two days time, you may either give it to Severus or bring it to me." Alexis smirked, knowing very well that he would not give it to Severus. Probably. "Now, let's get you back into bed before your counselors become concerned." She added softly, opening the door and motioning the child through. Right on time too, as a frantic looking, slightly younger man span around to look at them.

"Harry! Thank goodness. I woke up and you were gone. You shouldn't leave like that!" Charlie scolded, crouching down a few feet away from the child, so that he was on his level. Charlie was on the tall side, athletic and kind. Blond hair was frazzled and everywhere, blue eyes relieved, finally, to have found the child. He had woken up and decided to check on the boys and Harry had been gone. There was a monitoring charm on every bed. He would have to use a different charm on the child's if he was prone to removing those charms. Harry shouldn't have even known that it was there! But that was another thing to discuss with the Headmistress, who looked dead on her feet underneath the glamour, in the morning.

"I'm sorry, Charlie. I didn't mean to worry you. I just wanted to go for a walk." Harry whispered staring down at his feet.

"It's alright Harry. Off to bed with you, and let's not leave these rooms again without letting me know, alright?"

"Yes, sir." Harry murmured, briefly looking up at him before turning green eyes to the Headmistress. She looked tired like he was. "Goodnight Professor." He added, darting down the hallway that led to the rooms for the boys.

"Where did you find him?" Charlie asked tiredly, briefly scrutinizing the headmistress. The glamour she wore would keep the children from noticing, but some adult wizards could see through lower level glamours, or those cast by another person. Most healers could see through the lower glamours, as noted this morning when all of them turned to stare at her with mouths agape. He hadn't, and wouldn't, ask about her...state but he also didn't feel good about her walking all the way back to her own quarters.

"Astronomy Tower. I believe he had a nightmare." Alexis gave a small shrug, glancing toward the fireplace. Flooing sounded like a grand idea right now, if she wouldn't fall on her face the moment she landed.

"Thank you, Professor. I was worried." He admitted quietly, striding toward the fireplace and gathering some floo powder. "I believe it would be prudent for me to escort you back to your quarters via floo." He added silkily. He wasn't a Slytherin for nothing, after all. He could easily convince her, if he wasn't tired.

Alexis laughed softly, shaking her head with a smirk. "That it would be." She murmured, taking the offered arm and allowing him to help her through the floo. Once in her quarters he grinned, waved goodnight and disappeared back to watch over his boys. She sighed, stalking to her own bed and dropping on to it. It was quite time for all of Hogwarts' residents to be asleep.

-x-