I appreciate all the "reminders" to update, the next chapter should be a little quicker in coming. I had no idea what I was writing for this one, but I know the next one.

Chapter 8- Branching Out

For the male population of Hogwarts, the appeal of Professor Archer had not worn off over the months she had been our teacher. Our defense classes were not particularly interesting, but still seemed to include a lot of glazed-over adoring gazes from one half of the class. That was the half that didn't groan out loud when she announced that second years would be doing a term-long research project on a defense related topic of our own choosing. We would spend all term researching it, and then at the end of the term hand in a paper and make a presentation to the class.

"Besides our regular homework?" Shannon whispered incredulously, next to me.

Professor Archer didn't even wait for the murmurs to die down, but tossed her perfect hair, and went on that we would be working in pairs and to avoid all the drama that would inevitably accompany that, she would be assigning our partners. This elicited an even louder protest from everyone. While it wasn't surprising that Slytherin sensibilities were offended by being expected to possibly be paired with someone from another house, the Ravenclaw students were none too thrilled with the idea of working with us either. They took their grades seriously, and as far as they were concerned, dark-wizards-in-training were not the ideal study partners.

Given our own choice, I would have ended up working with Annabelle or Shannon or Adrienne, but this added a whole new element to it. Surely she would pair us with someone we would be able to work with? But then again because of Bella's constant battle with her she didn't like me, so she would probably pair me with some half-wit who didn't know the right side up of their wand.

I felt eyes on me and glanced over to find Ted, sitting next to Frank Longbottom as always, but looking at me intently. What if I was paired with him? Surely she wouldn't put the top two students in the class together. Would she? What would Bella say? But then what could she say? It was for a class project. With assigned partners. I'd have no choice. There was really nothing anyone could say. Secretly I suppose, I liked the idea of a clear, inescapable reason to talk to him. One that would not raise eyebrows or make my housemates call me a blood-traitor. But as much as it appealed, I wondered why it appealed to me.

As it turned out, my worry over the matter was for nothing, as I ended up paired with a Ravenclaw girl named Marlene McKinnon. She was a good student but not outstanding in defense, though I'd heard she was quite a good hand at transfiguration, we didn't have that class with Ravenclaw. To make the matter even simpler, her family was pureblood, though rather along the same order of the Potters-liberal and using their status to push for equality for mudbloods. Still, that hardly mattered for a class project, it could have been much worse. As Professor Archer read off the rest of the partners I twisted in my seat to look at her. She was one of the prettiest of the Ravenclaw girls, who were generally rather a plain bunch, with almost waist length brown hair and grey eyes. Not storm cloud grey like Sirius's, but bright and clear like a calm lake. She caught me looking and gave me a friendly smile, which I returned.

Ted ended up paired with Severus Snape, and I couldn't help but feel sorry for him. Maybe Professor Archer had figured he was so amiable and even-tempered he would be able to work with anyone, no matter how disagreeable they were. Snape was not actually a bad student, in fact he actually did very well in defense and in potions, but there was something distasteful about him, and he was certainly not like the confident, popular boys who made up Ted's group of friends.

I should have been pleased, and I was, but then there was a feeling I couldn't immediately identify, and didn't really care to. Disappointment.

As class ended Professor Archer suggested we get together with our partners soon, since we had until the end of the week to turn in a short proposal on what we planned to research. Marlene and I met in the library that night to talk about it. We were still in that ultra-polite-oh-no-you-go-first-I-insist stage of acquaintance, but it was obvious we would be able to work together.

She flipped through our defense book, looking for ideas. We went through several ideas and discarded them as too boring, too hard, too easy, or too difficult to research. As we were hitting a wall, Marlene pulled out a piece of parchment to make a list, and all of her books tumbled out of her bag. As I handed her back one, I glanced at the title, and saw it was not a school book but rather a book about ancient Egyptian witches and wizards. I looked at it curiously.

"I'm kind of interested in Egypt…" she admitted, blushing. "Kind of lame I know, but…"

"Could we do our project on that?" I suggested. "I mean, didn't they start a lot of the curses we still use?"

She cocked her head, considering. "That would be really interesting…"

"We could talk about all the curses they used on tombs as well…"

"That would be cool, and it would be enough for a term-long project, because they had zillions of curses…"

I nodded, feeling pleased with my creativity.

"That's a great idea, Andy."

She had to go to a Charms Club meeting, but we agreed to meet two nights later to work on the short summary of our idea we would give Professor Archer. I was just pulling out my astronomy homework when someone slid into the seat next to me.

"So what are you doing your project on?" asked Ted cheerfully.

"I'm not telling you," I replied smugly. "You might steal our idea."

He snorted. "Not likely."

I turned and looked at him. He had plunked himself down next to me so naturally, as though it was normal for us to sit around in the library chatting to each other. It wasn't really, he rarely spoke to me outside of class, and then usually only when no one else was around.

"Too bad you have to work with Snape," I offered, since I really did feel bad for him. He shrugged.

"Yeah, he doesn't say much, and he always acts like I'm annoying him. But then again he'll definitely do his share of the work, and he knows what he's talking about. I reckon dark arts is his favorite class or something, he's a whiz at it. So I guess no big deal that he's so…nasty." He shrugged again. "But you got pretty lucky, Marlene is a cool girl, and she's smart."

"She seems like. I wish we could have picked our own partners though."

"Yeah?" he rested his chin on his hand, studying me. "Who would you have wanted to work with?"

I bit my lip, thrown off by it, a question I hadn't expected. "Oh…I…I don't know. Just to assign us partners sounds like we're about five or something."

"Oh…yeah, I know," he agreed.

"Why? Who would you work with?"

"Oh…uh…well, it'd probably be easier to work with… Frank or someone…" he trailed off vaguely.

"Oh. Right."

"Yeah. Well…" he glanced at something over my shoulder. I turned as well and saw Narcissa had just come in. "I better go. Hope your and Marlene's idea is good, that way it will be less embarrassing when I get better marks than you again." He winked at me before heading out of the library.

A moment later Narcissa took the chair he had just vacated. "Who was that?"

"Just a boy in my defense class. We were talking about a project we have to do."

"I've never seen him before. Who is he?"

If anyone else had asked so many questions, I would have wondered why they were prying, but from Narcissa and Bella it had always seemed natural, simply because I'd never had anything to hide from them before. Their questions didn't seem excessive because they always knew everything about me.

"He's in Ravenclaw, so you wouldn't," I replied.

"He's not a pureblood?"

There seemed no point to lie about that, she would find out if I lied, and that would make it an even bigger issue and bring up more questions. "No."

"Oh."

I turned and looked at her, and found she was biting her lip with a perplexed look. "What's wrong?"

"Oh…nothing. Can you help me with charms? I can do wingardum leviosa, but I can't move things around."

"Sure," I agreed, glad to change the topic. "Let me see the book."

"Andy?"

I woke up to someone whispering my name, and then saw Bella peering through the curtain around my bed. I blinked at her for a moment, then wondered why she was in the second years' room.

"I..." she bit her lip. "I had a nightmare, and...I can't sleep," she whispered. "Can I stay here?"

In the darkness, she looked very young, and it occurred to me that nobody else, not even Narcissa, ever saw Bella this vulnerable. Her wand was lit only faintly, to avoid disturbing my roommates, but I could still see where tears had tracked down her face. Bella did not cry, not in front of anyone. Silently I lifted up the heavy blanket, and she climbed into bed with me, letting the curtain fall closed again.

"What was your dream about?" I whispered, as she laid her head against my shoulder.

"Don't remember," she answered automatically, and then seemed to think the better of lying. "I don't want to talk about it."

"It's just a dream Bella. Not real," I whispered, stroking her hair.

"I know," she mumbled, wrapping an arm around my waist. "Andy, don't leave me."

"M'not going anywhere," I yawned, relaxed by her warmth and presence.

"I don't mean now, I mean ever. You won't leave me Andy, will you?" she whispered, urgency coming into her voice.

"Course not."

"No matter what I do?" her hands were clenched in my nightgown. "Promise!"

"Bella, I promise I won't leave...what's wrong, what's happened?"

She wouldn't say anything more, and eventually she fell asleep, still clinging to me. I felt like she wanted me to save her, but I didn't know from what.

It was an unusually warm spring, promising an unusually warm summer. The warm weather came early, so that we almost felt cheated out of winter, but there were no complaints when we could escape Hogwarts Castle and roam the grounds on week-ends. Studying was much more acceptable when it was done sitting outside, and yet much harder to concentrate on our books.

Marlene and I took advantage of a Hogsmeade week-end, when all the older students were gone, to settle ourselves in a prime spot under a tree on the grounds to work on our project. We had found we worked very well together, having similar styles and interests, and I had even come to think of her as a friend. I said nothing about this in my own house, for although Ravenclaws were better than Gryffindors, or Merlin forbid, Hufflepuffs, socializing outside of Slytherin, for a Black girl, was certainly risky. I found Marlene refreshing after my friends in Slytherin, she had a straightforward, honest way about her that was entirely different than the posturing and mystery of those in my own house. She had a quiet confidence, she wasn't intimidated by my blood or my family, and she didn't hesitate to tell me when she thought I was wrong.

Marlene was a good student, and I wasn't about to be outdone in grades again, and so we had thrown ourselves into the project with enthusiasm, and made quite a good start with the books in the library. Now, we were just looking through those books to make sure there was nothing important we had overlooked, before we took our research any further.

It was while we were sitting there that Ted came and seated himself on the grass next to me as though this were an everyday occurrence. I looked up from my book, blinking at him.

"Tonks, you're sitting next to me."

He nodded approvingly. "Very good Andy. You're a clever sort of girl. I suppose that's on account of you being all pureblood and superior and stuff, hm?"

Marlene lowered her head to hide a smirk. I glared at him, and then pointedly returned to my book.

"What's that?" Marlene asked of something Ted was looking at.

"Oh, the classes we can take next year. Have you decided what you're going to do?"

I hadn't thought of it. "Bella is taking divination, she says it's rubbish," I volunteered.

"I reckon Care of Magical Creatures might be fun. At least be outside a bit…but I think I'd sooner take arithmancy."

"I'm going to take Ancient Runes," I announced. "And arithmancy."

I wasn't sure what my parents would say about that. Generally, the girls in our family took divination, it was supposedly a form of magic more responsive to women, all of the great Seers were women. It had simply been assumed that Bella would take it and she had never questioned that. But I was determined that if Ted Tonks could handle arithmancy, then so could I. As for Ancient Runes, I just thought it sounded interesting. I had always liked the Latin and Greek we had studied with tutors before we can to Hogwarts, I had a flair for foreign languages.

Ted gave me a sly grin…"I don't know Andy…they say arithmancy is pretty hard. Sure you can keep up?"

I gave him a smug look. "Piece of cake, Tonks."

He shrugged. "I'll leave you ladies to your work. You're going to need it to keep your grades up."

We watched him head across the lawn.

"He is the most annoying…" I began, before Marlene interrupted.

"He likes you."

The look I turned on her must have been one of true horror, for she quickly qualified.

"Not like that! I mean he thinks you're clever. I've heard him say so…that you're one of the smartest girls in school."

"Oh…"

"Oh indeed," she replied rather tartly, going back to her reading.

"Andromeda Black! Tell me you're not studying on Saturday!"

I look up to find Bella returned from Hogsmeade. Marlene had gone in and I was still sitting outside to enjoy the last of the sunshine, partly I was studying, and partly I was waiting for her. Since the night she had claimed she had a nightmare, I had been worried about her, watching her closely. She seemed fragile, her moods swinging even more wildly than usual, moving her to snap at even Sirius or Rudolphus, who were usually exempt from her anger, and to stay close to me whenever we were in the same room. She said nothing, so I didn't either, not even to Narcissa.

But as she flopped down on the grass next to me with an armful of bags, she seemed in good spirits.

"What did you get?"

"Oh robes...I got you a new scarf."

"Me? Why?"

"Oh, you didn't notice the ink...?"

"Bellatrix! That was my fav-"

"Well, I tried to get it out, but I'm rubbish at cleaning! Besides, the new one I got you is much prettier," she decisively, lying back in the grass. I considered for a moment if it was worth getting mad over, and then decided not.

Sirius ran up and skidded to a stop at her feet, expectantly. She opened a lazy eye, squinting at him in the afternoon sunlight.

"Can I help you, Gryffindor?"

"Did you get my chocolate frogs and ice mice?"

She blinked innocently. "Was I meant to?"

"Bella! I gave you a galleon to-"

"Oh calm down, your sweets are in there," she said, indicating the bags and closing her eyes again.

He rolled his eyes and busied himself looking through her bags, explaining that he owed James like a million chocolate frogs and he had to even it up, the Black honor was at stake.

"You got books?" he said incredulously, after a few moments. "You're turning into Andy or something!"

I made a face at him, while she continued to ignore him.

"Bella...where'd you get these books?" he said, after a moment, a tentative sound in his voice. Her eyes flew open, but other than that she gave no indication she heard.

"Where does anyone get books, half-wit, at the bookstore."

"They sold you these books?" he said, skeptically enough that I leaned over to see what he was talking about. The books in question were old and tattered.

"They were a gift," she replied primly.

Sirius and I exchanged a look. Rudolphus.

"Maybe you shouldn't have books that..." Sirius began.

"Maybe you're a crashing bore Sirius," she replied irritably. "Go away."

He looked at me, as though expecting an answer. I could only shrug. He sighed.

"Fine. Later."

I watched him walk back across the grass toward the castle, waiting until he was well out of earshot before I said her name softly, she opened he eyes again and gave me her attention, though she said nothing.

"I know," she finally said, when I didn't speak. "I'll apologize to him later. It's just everybody asking questions annoys me."

Despite this, I asked a question of my own. "Bella…Is Rudolphus…what…?"

She sat up then, and smiled at me. "Oh Andy, it's nothing like that. It's just a bit of fun, nothing really."

Impulsively, she kissed my cheek, and then gathered up her bags. "Come on, I'm hungry and it's getting dark."

The last week of classes, I was sitting in the common room putting the finishing touches on our defense paper, which was due the next day, while Bella lounged next to me talking to Elizabeth, and without even asking, started to braid my hair in a proprietary manner. This was not unusual for her, she did the same thing to Narcissa, and so I thought nothing of it until she rested her chin on my shoulder, reading what I was writing.

"You should add something more about the theory, here," she said thoughtfully, pointing to a paragraph on the Egyptian wizards' interest in immortality.

"We were going to, but we couldn't find any books. Well, we found one, but it was in the Restricted Section, and Professor Archer wouldn't sign the form, she said we didn't need it."

Bella frowned. "What kind of stupid teacher doesn't let you get the books you need," she ran her fingers through my hair, loosing the braid she'd made, and then said "Wait here."

She hurried up the stairs, and then returned a few minutes later bearing a battered black book, which she held out to me. "That will help."

The cover read Encyclopedia of Toadstools and I raised an eyebrow at her.

"I charmed the cover, Silly," she whispered against my ear, and then left me studying to go play chess with Lucius.

Our class presentation came off without a hitch, and Professor Archer declared it "very interesting" despite the fact that she still didn't like me. I hadn't added all that much from Bella's book, just a few facts about various ways the Egyptian wizards had thought they might achieve immortality, and then an explanation of how most of them had been proven to have nothing to with immortality…in fact they were a good bit more likely to bring your life to a sudden and painful end.

Ted and Snape went directly after us, and Ted did most of the talking for them, while Snape stood back looking annoyed and menacing. His interest in Narcissa the previous year had come to an abrupt end, and though I never found out exactly what happened to change his mind, he and Bellatrix had developed a lifelong hatred of each other as a result. That extended to me apparently, as he fixed me with a disdainful glare as soon as I glanced at him, so I quickly turned my attention back to Ted. He caught my eye, and grinned, not breaking the rhythm of his speech at all.

"Andromeda!" gasped Shannon, next to me. "Did that mudblood just wink at you?"

"Don't be stupid," I replied, and I wasn't a Black for nothing, I gave her a glare worthy of Bella in one of her worst moods, and she knew to not say anything else.

There was a great deal of excitement as we made our way down to the leaving feast, because we knew Slytherin, having won the Quidditch cup, would be winning the house cup that year. Our Quidditch players were certainly the stars of the evening, but I had contributed to our earning points in classes, and I had come out with the top grades in the exams, both in Transfiguration and Defense Against the Darks Arts. To say I was gloating would be an understatement, but Ted only shrugged and said that was just because I'd been working with a Ravenclaw.

I was walking with Bella and Adrienne, when Professor Archer stopped me at the door.

"I need to speak to you, Miss Black."

Bella and I looked at each other, wondering which "Miss Black" she meant, and she made an annoyed sound and added "Andromeda, that is. Bellatrix, Miss LeBlanc, you go on."

Adrienne continued into the Great Hall, but Bella struck a combative pose.

"Speak to her about what?" she demanded.

"That's not your concern, Miss Black. Go on. Don't make me take points from Slytherin tonight."

My sister crossed her arms and stared her down, and then turned on her heel, and went into the Great Hall, though I was positive she stopped just inside where she could still hear.

"Miss Black, where did you read this?" she had our final paper, and the section I had gotten from Bella's book was circled in red ink.

"I…I…ah…"

"Where did you find this book? It's not in the library and it's certainly not kept in this school."

"I…"

I wasn't going to tell on Bella, but my mind was blank as I tried to come up with something convincing. I had no idea what I had written that was so bad, it had all seemed fairly benign to me, but obviously something in it had tipped her off that I had gotten it from a book I shouldn't have.

"I gave it to her," said Bella from behind me, who had indeed been listening just beyond the door.

"I told you to-"

"Andy got that from a book I gave her," she repeated simply.

"And where did you get it, Miss Black?"

"Found it," she said, not willing to give a word more than necessary, being rude without being openly defiant.

"Where?"

"An old bookstore."

Professor Archer looked as though she knew that was a lie, but there was no way se could prove it.

"Go and get the book Miss Black, I'll be confiscating it. Books of that sort are not allowed in this school. And make no mistake, I'll speak to the Headmaster about this."

Bellatrix didn't seem the least bit bothered by any of this, but I couldn't stop wondering what I had written that could cause of so much trouble.