A/N: This note is not about the story, but about the names. I used the names of people I know to pick almost every name in this story, except of course, the ones you recognize as Canon. Some of you have said things about Tiffany's name, and I will admit, Tiffany is not a typical British name, nor a Wizard name. I know that, but hear me out before you go off the deep end like one woman who emailed me did.

Tiffany was born when I was nine, and she was my youngest sister. She was bright, cute and hyperactive, and the one person I loved most in my family. When she died in an accident at the age of five, it nearly killed me. I chose to give Tiffany Potter my little sister's name in homage to a young girl who never got to live because I like the character of Tiffany the best of all the Eight. You will understand then, why I will not change her name, now or ever.

This chapter is for my youngest friend. May you find peace and happiness where ever you are now.

Chapter 34

Awakening to a new world.

Rose woke up slowly, blinking eyes that seemed glued shut. She looked around, lost. She was in an unfamiliar room, and it took her a minute to place the Infirmary at Hogwarts. With that recognition came memory and she was suddenly wide awake. This was all wrong.

The last she knew, Manticore had been two days into the giant lands, casting the ritual that might help James and Tiffany out. That she was in the Infirmary now, without any memory of the time in-between was not a good thing, in her opinion.

She struggled to her elbows and looked around for Madame Potter. What she saw was all of Chimera, laying in beds on each side of her. The only two that were missing were James and Tiffany, and she could feel James sleeping not too far away. She looked at Chimera, but they were all asleep.

Rose closed her eyes, remembering the decision she had made at the end of the ritual, and the tears flowed. She'd allowed Ron to die so she could have her brother longer. "What is wrong with you?"

Rose jerked, and opened her eyes. Melissa was staring at her. "I can feel your pain, and I do not understand it. Will you share it with me?"

Rose closed her eyes again, and thought. Normally, she would talk to James, but this she could not share with him. He would never forgive her for allowing any of his Manticores to die for him. Melissa was her best friend and she might understand why Rose had chosen as she had. In the end though, Rose couldn't say anything about it yet. "I'm not ready to talk about it yet."

Melissa examined her. "When you are, I am here for you."

Rose turned and looked at Melissa. "I know, and thank you." She looked at the others. "How are the others?"

Melissa frowned, reaching out with her Healing talent, trying to feel the other Chimeras. As soon as she did, a bell rang in Madame Potter's office. "Miss Xavier, stop that now." Madame Potter followed her voice out of her office and looked at the startled girls. "I knew you'd be trying to check on them as soon as you awoke. No magic for either of you until I have examined you."

Rose frowned. "Why?"

Madame Potter raised an eyebrow. "First, because I said so, and second, because I have never even seen a more exhausted group of people than the bunch of you yesterday. You need time to rest and recuperate."

Melissa sighed. "I am tired. How long have we been asleep?"

"Three and half days right now. I don't know what happened, at least, not all of it." Madame Potter's face was bleak as she remembered the body Manticore had brought back. It had brought back far too many memories of the Voldemort war for her. She shook it off and looked at the two girls. "You lot will stay here, doing nothing magical at all, until I say otherwise, is that understood?"

The two girls nodded obediently, well aware that Madame Potter was perfectly capable of potioning them if they gave her any trouble. Rose reached for James. He was asleep, but something was different about him. Rose looked at Madame Potter. "How are James and Tiffany?"

Madame Potter looked toward one of the private rooms. "I don't know yet. We're trying everything we can though." She looked at Melissa and sighed. "Miranda Xavier is here, working with me."

Melissa blinked and closed her eyes. Rose looked at the two of them. "Who is Miranda Xavier, and why is that so bad?" She was getting very nervous about James. If he died after she let Ron die to keep him alive, she would never be able to live with that.

"Miranda Xavier is the best of us all," Melissa said quietly. "She only attends the worst cases, the ones everybody else has already written off as lost. She was the one that kept Athena Clearwater alive when Mrs. Clearwater lost her magic."

Rose closed her eyes, absorbing what Melissa had said. "How bad are they?" she questioned, with a note of hysteria in her voice.

Madame Potter sat on the edge of Rose's bed and took her hand. "We really don't know yet. The Soulbond put them through many changes at a time when their bodies were already changing, and that ritual changed them further. We're going to keep them asleep for another three days at least. They have to allow their magic to recover before they do anything, and you know as well as I do that James is possibly the worst patient ever." Madame Potter sighed. "I wish I could be more positive, but that is how it stands right now. Miranda is in the Potions classroom, brewing more things to give the two of them. I will allow you to speak to her when she comes back."

She patted Rose's hand and stood up. "Until then," she said briskly, "you may read, talk or write. Nothing else until I say so, understand?"

Melissa surprised a giggle out of Rose. "Can I sleep at least?" Madame Potter turned to look at Melissa. She stared at Melissa for barely a second. "Sorry, Madame Potter. I'm not thinking straight right now," Melissa apologized.

Madame Potter softened. "Sleep as much as you want. I'll have a House Elf bring you dinner." She looked at the girls. "I don't care how you feel, you will eat at least one full plate tonight. You have not had any solid food in three days, and you need nourishment."

Madame Potter went back to her office, leaving the two girls alone. Melissa looked at Rose. "We lost someone, didn't we?"

Rose closed her eyes, remembering the sight of the spear entering Ron's chest. "Yes."

Melissa winced as a deep sorrow started in her heart. She had been friendly with all the Manticores. Some she liked better than others, but all of them were friends. "Who did we lose?"

Rose started crying again, hot tears trickling down her cheeks. "Ron Stone."

Melissa closed her eyes. Ron had been one of their best, and a good friend. She had worked with him on a couple of projects and admired his mind as well as his sense of humour. "How did that happen?" she asked rhetorically.

Rose didn't hear it rhetorically though. She only heard the pain in Melissa's voice. "He died because I let him die." Melissa jumped in shock as Rose's feelings poured across the link. Rose was babbling as she told Melissa about what she had seen with the Sight, and how she'd kept casting. (For that story, see Decisions; Chapter one. Raven.)

Melissa listened to Rose, and understood the emotions coursing through her. Melissa frowned, and looked for Madame Potter. She got out of bed and slid onto Rose's bed. "Shh." Melissa held Rose as she cried, searching for the words that would make Rose feel better.

Madame Potter came in the room a few minutes later, and saw Melissa and the sobbing girl she held. Melissa made eye contact and shook her head at Ginny Potter. Madame Potter nodded slowly, and went back into her office.

Melissa held Rose until Rose drifted off into an exhausted sleep. She looked down at Rose with a frown. Melissa had been training as a healer since her parents had told her that she would be one, and still she had no answers for this problem. Melissa could understand it, and even agreed with what Rose had done. She would have given another to save one of her family as well.

Melissa sighed as she slowly stroked the sleeping girl's hair. She didn't have a clue what she was going to do to help Rose through this. She pushed the problem to the back of her mind to think about later as she gave in to the mourning for Ron.

It was nearly an hour later that she was interrupted by a moan. Wiping her eyes, she looked up. Adam was stirring restlessly. He opened his eyes and looked around. He shook his head and looked at Melissa. "Did it work?"

Melissa was about to answer him when she frowned. "To be honest, I don't know." She thought about it for a minute. "I assume it did, we're still here, and James and Tiffany are in there," she said, pointing at a closed door. "But I have not actually talked to them yet, they're still sleeping."

"Madame Potter?" she called, well aware from the times she'd worked on various people that Madame Potter had spells that allowed her to hear anyone calling her in the infirmary. Madame Potter came out of her office.

She looked at Rose first. "Is she going to be alright?" she asked Melissa.

Melissa frowned again. "Physically, I think so, as best I can tell without using my talent." Madame Potter raised an eyebrow. "She has a different problem. I'll talk to you later." Madame Potter nodded and turned her attention to Adam.

He looked at her. "Did it work?"

Madame Potter nodded. "We think so. The aging has stopped, and Madame Xavier is trying to reverse the aging they have already undergone." She looked toward the room the Soulbonded were in. "The ritual aged them more. They appear to be adults in their mid twenties right now. That put too much stress on their bodies and we have to reverse it, or they will have health problems later on."

She examined Adam and smiled. "You're recovering well. I want you to eat well tonight, and you'll probably be released tomorrow. "You will not use magic tonight, understand?"

Adam nodded. "Yes, Madame Potter." They were all distracted then, as Lisa stirred and tried to sit up. Melissa was looking at Adam when he saw Lisa, and she smiled as he lit up, his face alight with relief and love.

Madame Potter examined her carefully. "You're not in as good as shape as Adam, but you're still recovering well." She gave the tired girl the same instructions she had given the others and left them alone. "I have to go see how Miranda is doing. No magic while I'm gone." She handed Melissa a small bell. "If any of the others wake up, use this and I will come back to examine them."

After she left, Melissa quietly told Lisa and Adam about Ron. Adam closed his eyes. "I knew it. I've been having the weirdest dreams about Ron. I think I knew that he was gone."

The friends quietly mourned Ron, telling each other stories of him until dinner arrived. They grinned, as Hangeld stirred as the aroma of food penetrated the infirmary. He sat up, looking around. He saw Emma in the bed across from him and started to get up.

"I wouldn't do that, Mr. Hagrid." Hangeld fell back as Madame Potter's voice rang out from the doorway. She came in and closed the door. She crossed the floor to Hangeld. "Somehow, I knew you would wake up when the food arrived."

Hangeld was watching Emma. "How is she?"

"Sleeping. She will wake up when she is ready, and you will wait until then, wouldn't you?" Hangeld flushed, as he'd been trying to talk to Emma with the link. Madame Potter smiled gently at him. "I've been watching the whole bunch of you talk in your heads for three years now. Did you think I wouldn't learn what you look like when you're doing it by now?" She examined Hangeld as she had the others and gave him the same instructions.

Hangeld grinned as she told him to make sure he ate. He looked around, making sure that Chimera and Ginny were the only people in earshot. "Aunt Ginny, the only reason I'm not eating now is because you're between me and the food."

Ginny Potter looked at the boy that had grown up with her daughter and Emma, living at her house whenever his father was away in the giant lands She reached out and tousled his hair in a gesture she had not done since he started Hogwarts. "Then maybe I should move." She smiled at him, an impish smile he knew well. "After all, I wouldn't want you to starve. I know how hard it is to get you to eat at all."

Hangeld grinned, and was reaching for the trolley as soon as she was out of the way. He pulled it close to his bed and looked at it. He looked at the other Chimeras that were awake with a smile. "I see they brought me something to eat. Didn't they bring you anything?"

"Don't be greedy, Biggie. I'd hate to have to bounce you off the roof again." Hangeld blinked and his eyes went to Emma. She was looking at him with still sleepy eyes. Hangeld smiled at her, and the naked emotion in their eyes made the other Chimeras look away, giving the two of them as much privacy as they could.

They stared at each other, talking over the link for a minute, and whatever they said to each other in those moments will remain with them.

They finally broke the eye contact and Emma looked around. "Where are James and Tiffany? Did it work?" She frowned, and looked at the rest of Chimera. "What happened? I had the worst dreams."

A shadow seemed to fall across the rest of them that already knew about Ron. Hangeld and Emma looked around. Slowly, Melissa told them about Ron.

Dinner was a quiet affair, each of the Chimeras alone with their own thoughts about Ron. The night was not much better, as they had uneasy dreams, images filled with death and horror.

The next morning, as they ate, Madame Potter came in the room. With her was Professor Dumbledore. He looked at the quiet children lying in the beds. A wave of his hand brought a chair to him, and he sat down. "Madame Potter tells me that you are recovering nicely, and that most of you will be released later today. She does ask me to remind you that the no magic prohibition will stay in effect until she tells you different."

He looked at Chimera again. They were very quiet for patients that had just been released from the Infirmary, and Professor Dumbledore knew why. He sighed. "You all know that I have fought Dark Wizards for nearly a century now. Everyone knows that, but what you may not know is just how many people I have lost in that time."

Professor Dumbledore talked for nearly an hour. "You're young, too young for what you go to face. I tried to keep Harry in the dark for so long for this very reason. I wanted him to grow up some, to have a normal life before he had to face his Prophecy. I cannot protect you from the consequences of your actions, nor can anyone else. Before you decide anything though, wait for James and Tiffany to wake up, and talk to the other Manticores. I think they may surprise you."

Professor Dumbledore stood up and smiled at the Chimeras. "Speaking of the other Manticores, I believe a few of them are rather anxiously waiting to talk to you. Madame Potter has said that it would be acceptable for you to have visitors today, so I will send the first three in."

Professor Dumbledore stood up and turned to leave. "Professor Dumbledore." He turned and looked at Rose, who had spoken. "Thank you, Sir."

He smiled faintly. "No thanks are needed, Miss Evans."

After the headmaster left, three familiar figures came in and one of them was nearly running as she made her way to Rose. "Are you ok? How is James? Did it work?" May-ling was short enough that she had to get on Rose's bed to hug her. Mercy and Sonya watched, smiling as May-ling attempted to hug Rose, examine her and ask a dozen questions at once.

Rose hugged her sister, holding her tightly. "Yes, we don't know yet, and yes."She grabbed May-ling's hands, smiling at her. "Relax, oldest little sister. Madame Potter has us recovering nicely, she says."

May-ling wiped tears away and smiled at Rose. "I have just found my new family, pardon me if I need to see for myself that you are ok."

"Is James awake yet?" Sonya was quiet and somber as she directed the question at Rose.

"No, and Madame Potter said she would keep them asleep for another three days yesterday."

Sonya sighed. "Pity. I was hoping to give him the Manticores back." A shadow passed across her face. "Most of them, anyway," she said morosely.

Adam looked at Sonya. "Sonya, why do you have a sword on your back?"

The Border girl shrugged. "Because I respect fine art." She looked at the confused faces of the patients and smiled. "It's a Borderer thing. I'll tell you all about it later." She hesitated, looking at Rose. "I don't have to tell you about Sphinx one, do I?" She sighed at the looks on Chimera's faces. "Right. Sphinx one was sent home yesterday. The funereal is in four days, and the family has asked that it be private, family only. Sphinx is upset about that, but I've talked to them, and they have agreed not to do anything rash."

Sonya told Rose about the Manticores, and what she'd been having them do and then left, leaving Mercy and May-ling with Chimera. Mercy was watching them quietly. "I'll leave you with May-ling. Nothing I have to report is vital, and it can wait until you are all back on your feet again." She smiled at them. "It is good to see you all."

May-ling was carefully examining each member of Chimera, much as Madame Potter had done when each of them awoke. Rose watched her with a slight smile. "You do know that Madame Potter has already done that, don't you?"

May-ling shrugged, glancing at Rose as she continued her work. "Of course, but you are my responsibility, and I will see for myself how you are."

"Are you implying that you don't trust me, Miss Sun-Tzu?" Madame Potter was standing in the door of her office, with a faint frown on her face.

May-ling looked at her, and smiled. "No, I am implying that these are my friends and my patients, and I will not be satisfied until I have checked them out. As you yourself taught the Manticores, 'never take someone else's word for the condition of a patient. Everyone makes mistakes or misses things.' I am simply following your teachings."

Madame Potter nodded, smiling at May-ling. "Very good, May-ling. If classes were in session, I would give you twenty points, but you'll have to settle for some of those brownies you make disappear so quickly."

Hangeld looked up. "Your brownies?" He suddenly looked hopeful. "Might there be enough for a growing boy?" Emma was looking at Ginny Potter with a hopeful look as well.

The other Chimeras watched the three of them trying to beg more brownies out of Madame Potter. Rose looked at the others. "Do you get the feeling we're missing something here?"

Lisa shrugged. "I can't imagine what. Brownies are merely bits of cake with chocolate in them."

Emma, May-ling and Hangeld turned identical looks of horror on Lisa. The resultant babble as they all tried to convey the depths of her ignorance to her made all of them impossible to understand. Madame Potter shushed them. "Lisa, have you ever had a brownie?"

Lisa shook her head. Affecting a superior tone, she imitated her mother. "Such rubbish are for the lower class, who do not care what they eat. You are a Malfoy, and as such, you will have taste."

She looked around at the faces around her. "What? Have you ever seen what they're made of? No nutritional value, they don't even wake you up like coffee does. What's the point of eating something that does nothing for you but make you fat?"

Adam grinned happily. "Just leave her alone." He looked at Lisa and smiled, but this was a private smile, just for her. "I'll introduce her to the fun in food."

Lisa started to say something when Adam opened a private link. She listened for a minute, and her eyes got wide and she stared at Adam. He just grinned and said something else to her over the link. Lisa stared at him for a minute, eyes wide and her mouth open. She shook her head as the other students began laughing and looked at them. Patiently ignoring her bright red face she turned to Madame Potter. "You said something about releasing us today?"

Madame Potter had a smile on her face as well, and she nodded. "Most of you anyway. Hangeld and Emma may be staying one more night, and I may have some tests for them later. Right now though, I want to clear the crowd in front of my Infirmary away, so you people are going to have to hurry with your visitors."

Rose looked up. "How many visitors are out there?"

Madame Potter pulled a parchment from her pocket. "Let's see, in order, they are Mr. Clearwater, all the team leaders, Miss Kitchen, Miss Cale and a Mr. Terrence, who is waiting for James to wake up."

Adam looked up, puzzled. "What is Trea doing here?" Trea Cale was one of the new Manticores from Beauxbatons, and she was supposed to be in America, at the summer training site.

Rose considered the list for a minute. "Would you send in Jerrick, Trea and Emily, please? Those will be the easiest ones to start with."

Madame Potter nodded. "After you get rid of the mob at my door, you have a lot of letters to look at as well." Rose rolled her eyes, but not until Ginny Potter had turned toward the door. "You shouldn't roll your eyes like that, Miss Evans, you might end up looking like Mad-eye Moody."

Rose stared at her back as the other Chimeras smiled. She shook her head with a small smile. "She's got better sight than I do."

Jerrick, Emily and Trea came in then, and Rose sat up a bit. "Emily, what do you want first?"

Emily looked up from the scroll she was reading. "Nothing, I just wanted to tell you that I was going to be gone for the next two days, and why, but without anyone else knowing." Before anyone could ask her why or where she was going, she started talking again. "I have an invite to Ron's funereal, and I am going, both to say goodbye, and to represent Manticore. It is not right that we not be there, so I will be there, as Ron's lover and fiancée."

Rose and Melissa looked at each other while the rest of the people in the room tried to ignore the conversation and their blushes. Rose looked at Emily curiously. "You were never Ron's lover."

Emily looked at her and a ghost of a smile ran across her face. "I know that, and you know that, but his family doesn't, and I have a good many letters implying different."

Adam looked at her. "And just how old are those letters?"

Emily just shrugged. "Professor Dumbledore might be able to prove they are not from Ron to me, but nobody else could." She looked at Rose and smiled again, although it was a sad smile. "I really must thank you for allowing me to read the fifteenth book. It has some fascinating spells."

Rose frowned, thinking about the fifteenth volume of the Pendragon spellbooks and then her head jerked up. "You and Ron used the Dream Writer spell, didn't you?"

Emily nodded as Rose looked at her with more respect. The Dream Writer spell allowed you to capture your dreams on paper. You would cast it just before going to sleep, and it would record every dream you had until you woke up. It was, however, a difficult spell to cast, requiring an amazing amount of patience and skill of the caster. Rose suddenly colored, blushing darkly as she thought about what Emily had said. "Emily, what dreams did you two record?" Rose really didn't want to hear the answer, as she was afraid she already knew, but she had to ask.

"All of them, for the last six months, but we were only interested in a certain type of dream for my paper. I'm starting a new line of study on the differences between male and female subconscious thinking during puberty and adolescence." Emily started to explain, but Rose stopped her.

"Emily, I know it may be interesting to you, but I'm not ready to hear about male dreams during puberty or adolescence." Rose repressed a shiver. She really was not ready for that, and knowing that the dreamer was dead didn't help at all.

Emily blinked and then shrugged. "Anyway, a little tampering, and the dreams look like letters from Ron and I to each other. I used a couple of them to convince his father that I had the right to be there." Emily blinked, and wiped a tear away. "I want to say goodbye to Ron."

Rose nodded. "Do you need anything?"

Emily shook her head, and started to get up. "No, I just didn't want to rub it in Sphinx's face that I would be there and they wouldn't."

Hangeld stopped her. "Emily, do me a favor,will you?" He reached over the side of the bed and found his Manticore uniform. Taking his pocket knife out, he cut a lock of hair. "Take this to Sonya, and tell her you need it braided for Ron. She'll understand. While you're at the funereal, if you get a chance, put it in his casket, will you?"

Emily took the hair, and cocked her head, looking at Hangeld. "I will, but what is it, and what's it for?"

Hangeld explained about the Borderer custom. "Father taught me about it. He learned about it while he was with the giants during the Voldemort war."

The rest of Chimera looked at each other. A few minutes later, Emily had a folded parchment with hair from every Chimera present. She looked at it and added a long lock of her own. Rose frowned, and looked around. "Jerrick, if you would, could you get a bit from James and Tiffany?"

Jerrick nodded, and went into the small room where the Soulbonded were lying. He came out a minute later, and handed more hair to Emily. Adam's sharp eyes were the only ones that noticed that there were three shades of hair in the bundle he handed Emily.

Emily left a minute later after saying goodbye to everyone, and was reading her scroll before she was out the door. Jerrick watched her go. "At least she has something to take her mind off Ron," he said quietly. He looked at Chimera. "Right. I hate to do this, but we have business. Rowan finally showed up. He's in the Hogsmeade Inn, and I've paid for him to stay there until James wakes up."

Rose frowned and Jerrick was about to remind her who Rowan was when her face cleared up. "Can he work with us? Can he enchant Muggle things to work here?" Rowan was the name of the Gypsy that had sold Stephanie Spense her enchanted Muggle shoes.

Jerrick sighed. "That's up to James."

Rose stared at him in confusion. Jerrick shrugged. "The old man has a couple of quirks and a strong moral sense. He wants to know what we want to charm and why. I was not about to tell him, and that made him suspicious, so now he's insisting on talking to our leader about it."

Rose nodded. "After James and Tiffany are up, James and I will go down to the village and meet with him. Make sure he sticks around, will you?"

Jerrick nodded. "Jose Amigo reports that a lot of the more extreme criminal Wizards from England are disappearing to somewhere and nobody has seen them. Father and the Aurors say the same thing, and report that Wizard crime is at the lowest ebb in years."

Rose frowned. "What does that mean?"

Jerrick sat back and considered her question. "There are a number of possibilities. The one my father and I favor is that they're being recruited by someone and moved into hidden areas for whatever that person has in mind. We could be wrong however, and they could have all individually decided to move to another country and start fresh somewhere they are not known."

He considered the matter some more. "There are a couple of other possibilities, but they're only remotely possible, so we're not seriously considering them. The Aurors are passing the descriptions of the missing criminals to other nations, so that if they show up somewhere else, we'll know about it."

Jerrick finished his report and then looked at Lisa. "The last bit of that information you wanted is here, and it appears that you were correct. Father doesn't like your plan, but he will go along with it for now. He also says that if things change, he will send you an owl, telling you about his actions."

Lisa nodded and then looked at Jerrick. "Before or after he does it?"

Jerrick shrugged. "Knowing father, he'll send the owl as he's leaving to do it, so that he can say that he sent it first, but too late for anyone to do anything about it."

The rest of Chimera was looking at Lisa in confusion. She looked at them. "It's not a big deal. I just need some insurance." She smiled thinly. "It's just the Game of Houses."

Rose looked at her. "If you need help, we're here for you."

Lisa nodded. "I know, but this piece of the Game is mine to play."

Jerrick got up to leave. "That's all I will have until I finish going through all the things that accumulated during our absence. I'll let you know if anything important comes up." He looked at Chimera. "Father sends his condolences, and his congratulations. There is a letter from him addressed to Chimera in your mail. I suggest you read it."

Rose smiled faintly. "Can't I just ask you what's in it?"

Jerrick raised an injured eyebrow. "As if I would ever admit going through your mail." He grinned at them. "You'll have to work harder than that to catch me up." Jerrick paused at the door, looking back at the bedridden team. "I hope you come back soon. We need you all."

Trea Cale stared after him. "That is one of the strangest people I've ever met." She turned and looked at the group in bed. "And given the people I've been meeting lately, that is really saying something."

Lisa smiled at her. "You have no idea." Lisa frowned at her. "Why are you here anyway? Aren't you supposed to be at Base Camp one, doing your training?"

Trea nodded. "Yes, but after the incident, everyone wanted to know what happened, and since I was doing well, they sent me to find out. What happened to Ron, and why did we know about it?"

Melissa sighed. "You know about the 'Final Moments' spell James has on everyone?" At Trea's affirmative nod, Melissa continued, "it seems that it works better than James knew. As far as I know right now, everybody in Manticore felt Ron's passing."

Trea stared at her. "Passing?" She paled and closed her eyes. "You mean he died?"

The silence of the Chimeras was all the answer she needed. "Is that going to happen every time a Manticore dies?"

Melissa shrugged. "We don't know yet. It may have been the proximity to the Heart of the World that did it, or it may do that for every one of us."

Trea frowned. "Can you tell me about it, so I can tell the others what happened?"

The group in bed looked at each other. "None of us know the whole story, we were casting the ritual and were a bit groggy by then. Ask Sonya, or one of the others that was there. You would probably get the best answer from Professor Evans."

Trea shook her head. "I can't ask him. He's gone, along with that other American, Mr. Twofeathers."

Rose looked up, frowning. "Where did they go?"

Trea frowned. "As near as I could tell, from a conversation I overheard this morning, he found a sable sword, and went looking for the owner, or something like that."

Rose sat up. "A sable sword, or Sable's sword?"

Trea frowned. "I'm not sure, why? Does it mean something to you?"

Rose nodded absently as she thought about it. "Sable is his Lifemate, bonded in the Borderer way. She went missing a few years ago, and he's been searching for her ever since. If one of the giants had her sword out there, it's the first clue he's had in over five years."

Trea stared at her. "She's been missing for more than five years?" At Rose's nod, Trea shook her head. "Most people would have given up by now."

Hangeld sighed. "He's lifemated, bound to her in love and honor forever. Even if she was dead, he would never stop mourning her, and he would never remarry. It's what a lifemating means."

Trea blinked. "Forever?"

Hangeld looked at her. "Forever," he confirmed.

Trea shook her head. "I owe Jerrick an apology. He's not the strangest person I've met." Trea tried to image binding herself to one person forever, living or dead and simply could not do it. There were people she liked, and a boy she might love, but if he left her or died, she knew she would one day love again.

Hangeld smiled as he read the thoughts passing across her face. "Don't worry about it. Only a dozen or so couples in a generation take the Lifemate bonding, and all of them are something special to see together, a lot like James and Tiffany."

Trea shook her head and changed the subject, telling them about the training and their progress this summer. The Beauxbatons people were doing fairly well in most things although the physical training was a shock to them. All of them were wizards, used to using magic for almost everything, and the sudden change to doing without magic and with sheer muscle power had shocked them badly.

She grinned at Lisa. "Lacy appears to have an extraordinary talent with the weapons. She's scored better than everyone at camp this year, and better than ninety-four percent of all the Manticores overall. She said to tell you that she expects an owl or two now that you're back."

Lisa smiled, thinking of the girl she'd befriended when Beauxbatons was at Hogwarts. "Good for her." She smiled again, a rather sly smile. Ginny Potter saw it, and was forcibly reminded that Lisa and Draco Malfoy were related. Lisa's smile didn't have the same cruel twist to it, but it was a sly smile, which would have been in place on any Slytherin face. "Ask her if she's care to test her skills for a bit of money."

Trea looked at Lisa and her smile. "I'll pass that along," she said thoughtfully, "but I think I'll include a warning about your smile as well. She is, after all, a feline, not a magical."

Chimera looked at each other. "She's a what?" asked Emma in confusion.

Trea looked at her. "She's a feline. All the Beauxbatons teams are named after big cats, just as all your teams have the names of magical beasts. I am a Lion, and she's the Tiger team leader."

Emma nodded in understanding. "How many teams do you have, anyway?"

"Four. Lion, Tiger, Cheetah and Jaguar. That gives us enough people to defend Beauxbatons and have two teams in reserve. Beauxbatons is built a bit differently than Hogwarts, and since we are defending a place, not hunting and seeking the enemy, we're organizing a bit differently than you are."

They discussed the differences in their respective trainings for a bit and then Trea left to talk to Sonya. Rose asked her to send the team leaders in as she went out. They came in, finding places to sit or lean.

Arthur Weasley was sitting on his little sister's bed, having gone directly to Emma when he came in. "We may have a problem. Some of the Manticores are seriously shaken over Ron's death. I'm hearing murmurs of people wanting to leave Manticore."

Rose frowned, automatically trying to look down the future paths, only to stop as the bell tinkled again and Madame Potter came out of her office. "One more time, and all of you will be sleeping until the Sorting Ceremony." Rose blushed and nodded meekly.

Rose nibbled at the ball of her thumb as she thought about what the team leaders were saying. "Right. We've got to stop this, but there is nothing we can do right now." She thought about it. "This is what we're going to do. You have to convince the people in your teams to wait, as no one can be released until James and Tiffany are awake and functioning anyway. That will give me time to try and keep them, or to have measures in place if they insist on leaving."

Debra Valentine, Dragon's team leader looked at Rose curiously. "Measures?" she questioned.

Rose shrugged, still thinking about the problem. She answered the question absently. "If someone insists on leaving, we'll have to set them free, but James is not going to allow anyone to run around with all that information in their head without knowing they're under an oath. Since all the families know as well, we'll have to Obliviate them and their families."

The team leaders looked at each other. Zachary Moore, the Unicorn team leader from Hufflepuff frowned. "You can't just Obliviate a dozen people like that."

Rose just looked at him for a minute. "Yes, actually we can. Having a large number of people not bound by oaths or other means would be too dangerous to the remaining Manticores. I consider erasing the memories of a dozen people a small price to pay to keep our people safe."

Rose looked at each of the team leaders in turn, thinking about Ron. When she spoke again her voice was raw and filled with pain. "We will lose more people, but I will do everything it takes to bring as many through the war as I can, and if that includes Obliviating half the world to keep our secrets, so be it."

The group thought about it quietly until Debra spoke again. "As much as I hate to admit it, she's right. We all know about security, and having people out there who know all of our secrets but don't have the protections of Manticore would not be good." She hesitated, biting her lip. "Speaking of secrets, where is Maynard Winchester?"

Rose blinked. "What do you mean?"

Debra raised an eyebrow. "He's missing. No one will admit to having seen him since we returned and Sphinx won't even say his name." She frowned thoughtfully, thinking back. "After the last battle, he was unconscious, and he was brought back by Phoenix. He was brought to the infirmary with the other wounded, all of whom were released after being treated, except for you. Maynard is the only one that didn't return, but he's not here either."

Rose frowned. "May-ling, what do you know about Maynard?" She was fairly certain that she knew, but she wanted to make certain.

"He did something terrible, I think. Sphinx won't talk about it, but every time someone mentions him, they get angry all over again. I think he had something to do with Ron's death." May-ling sent. "Do you want me to ask Richard?"

"No, I know everything I need to know. I'll tell you about it later." Rose looked at the team leaders. Richard March was being quiet, but the look in his eyes effectively stopped questions. "The Manticores need to know what happened, Richard."

Richard looked at Rose. "Sphinx doesn't know anyone with that name." Richard March was a good man, and accepting of almost anything, and the other team leaders were shocked to hear his savage tone.

The other team leaders looked at each other. Arthur Weasley had been thinking about the situation, and now he frowned. "What about the link?"

Richard flicked a glance in his direction. "There is no one in my link who could be the person you're discussing, and that is all I'm going to say about it."

A chill seemed to pass through the room. None of the linked people could imagine losing the link, and the thought of being cut out of it made them shudder. Melissa was talking to Rose, and now she looked at Richard. "Richard, would you get me something, please?"

Richard looked at her and smiled wryly. "If you simply want to tell them what happened, go ahead. Sphinx will not discuss it, but we understand that the rest of you will want to know."

Melissa nodded. "I was offering you a chance to leave," she said gently, "so I could tell them without hurting you again."

Richard sighed. "It can't hurt any worse than it does now."

Melissa looked at him for a minute, and then turned to the other team leaders. "Sphinx is holding Maynard responsible for Ron's death." The team leaders stared at Richard, and turned their attention back to Melissa as she told them what had happened during the last battle.

"He froze?" asked Conor McCloud, looking at Richard for confirmation.

Richard's eyes were a strange mixture of anger and grief. "He did, and it was cover him that Ron left his position. His cowardice caused Ron's death."

Zachary Moore frowned. "I understand that you don't want him in your team anymore, but acting as if he is Voldemort is going a bit far, don't you think? He tried to be one of us at least, and it's not his fault that he couldn't make the grade."

Richard shrugged. "It doesn't matter. He is not one of us. We don't care what he does now, but he will never again be a Sphinx."

The other team leaders looked at each other. Further discussion of the matter was interrupted by Madame Potter and another woman. "If you're not confined to a bed, it's time to leave. We have to do some work here."

The team leaders said their goodbyes and left. Chimera was examining the new woman. She was tall and thin, almost gaunt. She had the Xavier eyes though, so dark brown as to be almost black, as well as the black hair and general look. Her hair was greying, and lines etched themselves in her face. She looked at Melissa. "I read your report on links. You're holding a few things back, but overall, it was very good work."

Melissa blushed. "Thank you, Ms. Xavier."

The woman smiled. "Formality is for strangers and patients. You are kin, and a colleague. My name is Miranda."

Melissa blushed again, flushing a deeper red. "Kin, yes, but I have a long way to go before I am in your class, Miranda."

Miranda's smile turned to a laugh. "I've been a healer for nearly sixty years. When you have been one as long as I have, you'll be as good as I am."

Melissa was practically glowing, she was so red. "Uh, I, I." She stopped, hiding her face as she stuttered to a stop.

Emma was watching her curiously. "What's the matter with you? She's being nice."

Melissa left her face covered as she answered her over the link. "Emma, that's Miranda Xavier, the very best of us all. She's a legend in the Clan." Sensing that Emma's confusion was only growing she looked for a way to make Emma understand. "Emma, what would you say if Professor Dumbledore treated you as an equal, and said you were as good as he was?"

Emma blinked. "I'd say he was nutters."

"Well, she's as good as the Headmaster, in her field, possibly better. She has written four books, all of them required reading for every healer." Melissa's mental tone was wistful. "If I am half as good as she is in sixty years, I'll be happy."

Miranda was watching the two of them. "Melissa, don't sell yourself short." Melissa looked back at her, surprised. "You are capable of everything I do, if you apply yourself after your little problem is over."

She looked at the others. "Right now though, I'm going to examine you all. Madame Potter wants another opinion about you all. Before you ask, I know about Manticore, and what you face. She had to tell me so I could treat Mr. Evans and Miss Potter." She looked at Rose. "I'm going to start with you, as you are the closest to what Mr. Evans should look like. Can you join me over here, please?"

Rose got up and the two of them went into a private room. Melissa was still thinking about what Miranda had said and the other Chimeras were watching the room Rose had gone into. Emma looked at Melissa. "Is she really that good?"

Melissa looked up. "She's the very best Healer in the Xavier Clan. Some of us think she's the best we've ever had." The other Chimeras looked at the room Miranda Xavier had taken Rose into. The Xaviers had been healers for centuries, responsible for hundreds, possibly thousands of cures, potions, treatments and antidotes in the Wizard world. Anyone this Clan thought was their best Healer would be remarkable.

Rose was watching Miranda curiously. She'd heard a great deal about this woman from Melissa and she was intensely curious to see what kind of person could command so much of Melissa's respect. Miranda closed the door and turned to Rose. "You're the Seer, correct?" At Rose's nod, Miranda frowned. "Do you know how much of your magical talent it takes to use your Foresight talent?"

Rose blinked. "Not really. I know there have been times I couldn't use it, but I haven't actually thought about it."

Miranda was examining Rose carefully. "I'm going to use my talent now. If it makes you feel anything painful, let me know." While Rose was wondering what she meant, Miranda extended her hands. The leaf green glow that Rose had seen so many times on Melissa's hands glimmered over Miranda's hands and then started flowing over Rose.

Rose froze, watching the glow. It grew, covering Rose completely, something Melissa had never been able to do. Melissa had often used Rose to practice her talent on, and it had always been warm and relaxing. Miranda's touch though, was warm, but tingled, as if a low voltage shock was crawling across her skin.

Miranda was watching Rose. "You've been touched many times with the talent. Are you that accident prone, or is Melissa using you to practice?"

Rose frowned. "She uses me for practice. How did you know?"

Miranda continued her examination as she answered Rose. "Everyone has scars. They may only be little things, from the usual childhood scrapes, but they are there, under the skin. Think of them as places where the skin is thicker, like a seam. A good healer can remove those seams, but most people don't even know they are there, so healers don't usually bother. You don't have any, and after examining your brother, I was expecting to find a few at least."

Rose grinned. "I wouldn't have nearly as many as he does. James has a different idea of acceptable consequences than I do."

Miranda smiled. "I can tell. I may stay around a few days after he wakes up, just to find out how such a young man can have so many animal related scars." She frowned. "You've been shot, with one of those Muggle guns."

Rose turned her best innocent look on Miranda. "It was just one of those childhood things."

Miranda snorted. "Poppycock. I can feel your emotions, Miss Evans. That scar is tied into a good many emotions."

Rose blinked, trying to find an acceptable answer that did not include telling Miranda about the events surrounding their alteration of the twin bond they'd been born with into something far more. Miranda was watching her face as she finished and the green glow faded back into her hands. "Don't worry about it. I don't need to know the why, just that it did happen. Right now I have far more important questions for you."

With that, Miranda began asking about James. Dozens of questions about his habits, both physical and mental, as well as his typical dietary patterns. After nearly an hour of these questions, Rose couldn't wait any longer. "What do you need all these information for? Is James going to be OK?"

Miranda sighed. "Mr. Evans will be OK, as you put it, for now. I am trying to insure that he is OK for the rest of his life. The aging of the Soulbond and whatever you did at the Heart of the World has to be reversed, or the two of them will have problems later on in life. The rapid aging of the Soulbond has always meant the couple has a short lifespan, as the human body is not meant to operate at the levels the Soulbonded do for very long."

She stopped to get a drink of water, offering Rose a glass at the same time. "With Mr Evans and Miss Potter, the ritual did something more to them, and it has nearly destroyed the delicate balance that a body needs to function properly." Miranda raised her hand to forestall the questions bubbling up out of Rose. "Allow me to finish. The two of them will be fine once they have recovered from whatever they were doing while you were casting that spell. However, you cannot abuse the body the way the Soulbond and the ritual have done without paying for it."

She stood up, stretching her back. "Muggles have long names for the types of problems they'll have as they reach middle age, but since I plan on stopping most of it, I'm not going to go into it now. I needed that information about James so I would know what he should be like, without the effects of the Soulbond."

She sat back down and pulled a thick sheet of parchment from a small bag. "I have spent the last two days asking Mr and Mrs Potter about Tiffany, and I have a very good picture of where she should be, mostly because Madame Potter kept very good records, medically speaking."

She grinned at Rose. "Your parents will be here tomorrow, and apparently your mother has extensive records on James. That will help me reduce them to an age that will allow them to live normal lives."

She smiled at Rose's expression. "Yes, I am going to return them to the age they should be." Miranda frowned. "Almost, anyway. The training you Manticores do has built too much adult muscle on them, and I cannot return them to mid-puberty without doing things to that mass. The best I will be able to do is bring them back to about sixteen physically, and allow them to grow naturally from there."

Rose thought about it for several minutes. "If I am following you," she said, thinking the whole thing through, "James and Tiffany are like Muggle athletes on steroids right now, and you're going to clean the effects away, and make them grow up normally."

Miranda nodded. "Very good. That is an apt analogy for the situation. They grew too much, too fast and we have to reverse it and allow them to grow older naturally."

Miranda studied Rose thoughtfully for several minutes. "I believe that a patient's mental well being has a great effect on their physical being. The two in the other room are fine in that regard. You, though, have many things that I am concerned about."

Rose looked away. "I really don't want to talk about it."

Miranda smiled gently. "Which it? The secret you keep, I am not worried about. James has it, and all of the Chimeras as well. I asked your parents about it, and I am reassured by them that they know what it is, and they are watching it. I assume that it must be an Evans Clan thing."

Rose winced. "You're close enough."

Miranda nodded. "Good enough. There are a couple of things I would like to talk to you about though. What happened at the ritual that you feel such guilt about?"

Rose closed her eyes, feeling the hot sting of tears again as she remembered her choice. "That is the one I am not ready to talk about yet."

Miranda watched her, seeing and feeling the turmoil Rose was experiencing. "I will not insist now, but you need to talk to someone about it. If you let it fester, it will come back to bite you later, like an unhealed wound."

Rose nodded. "I will talk to Melissa about it."

Miranda raised an eyebrow. "You talk to her about a lot of things, don't you?"

Rose smiled. "She's my second best friend, right after James." She blushed. "I know May-ling should be, but I just haven't known her as long, and since Melissa and I are linked." Rose shrugged, unable to articulate the feelings she had.

Miranda sighed. "You love her."

Rose flushed a deep red. "Of course I do. She's my friend."

Miranda sighed again. "Rose, I know what you feel for her, and it's not friendly."

The older woman stared at Rose patiently. Rose finally sighed. "Empaths are a pain." Miranda smiled at her. "I might have some feelings that are not normal," Rose admitted.

Miranda snorted. "Not normal? Are they the result of a potion, or a spell? Were you forced to have them somehow?"

Rose stared at her quizzically. "No."

"Then how are they not normal?" Miranda asked, raising an eyebrow. "Unless you mean not normal by society standards." At Rose's nod, Miranda sighed again. "Child, I've been reading my patients for more than half a century, and let me tell you something. Those feelings are far more common than you would believe."

Rose flushed again. "Miss Evans, just relax. If it is meant to be." She stopped as Rose's emotions flared. Miranda studied Rose trying to figure out what had caused that intense emotional surge. She thought about what she'd said. "I see. You are wondering if you like her simply because the Prophecy says you will."

Rose looked at her hands. "I have to wonder about it," she said bitterly. "We've seen too many examples of the Prophecy at work for me not to believe it can sway events to suit itself."

Miranda thought about it. "This is not my area of knowledge. You're talking about Metaphysics, not healing. I have no answers for you, but I will leave you with something to think about."

Rose looked at her. Miranda hesitated, looking for the words to express what she was thinking. "You have always had a tight mental bond, first with James, and then Chimera and now all of them and May-ling. Would you really be happy with anyone you didn't have that same kind of bond with, or would you always feel that something was missing?"

Rose thought about it, considering the idea. "I don't know," she admitted.

Miranda stood up. "Think about that, and consider that your feelings are because Melissa is right for you and not the result of someone's vision eight hundred years ago." She smiled gently at Rose. "Whatever you do, you need to talk to Melissa about it one of these days. It's not something that only concerns you. She has a say in this as well."

Miranda ushered Rose out and took Melissa into the room next. The rest of the Chimeras didn't take as long as Rose had and by dinner, all of them, even Hangeld and Emma had been released from the Infirmary.

Chimera went to dinner together, and found just a single table in the Hall. Most of the Manticores were there already, although they were very quiet. May-ling was the first to look up when Chimera entered the Hall and a few seconds later she impacted on Rose, nearly knocking her over.

The rest of Manticore was not far behind, and all thoughts of dinner fled before the hugs and touches of the Manticores. Melissa finally got clear and stood on a bench. "May I have your attention please?"

The Manticores quieted down, and turned to face Melissa. "Miranda Xavier has examined James and Tiffany. The mission was a success, and they will be back with us soon." A quiet murmur grew among the Manticores, along with a few cheers. Melissa waited until they were quiet again. "I know that Madame Potter and Ms Xavier are usually less than forthcoming with information, and I thought you deserved to know what was going on. Anyone that wants more details than that will have to wait though, I haven't eaten in awhile, and I'm going to see if I can eat as much as Hangeld tonight."

Emma was smiling later that night, as they prepared for bed. "It will be nice to sleep in a real bed again. I was getting tired of having things poke me in the side."

"I know what you mean, although running water is far more important," said Lisa. "A long hot bath has to be the greatest thing ever."

Melissa smirked at her. "How much of that is because Adam was scrubbing your back?"

Lisa blushed, and got into bed. "That was merely a bonus."

Emma looked at Lisa in shock. "You were nude with Adam?" she asked.

Lisa got into her bed and leaned on her arm, facing Emma. "Yes. I love him and we've just had a very good look at what could happen to us. I'm not going to regret anything we do." Lisa looked away, her eyes far away, as she thought. "I think that if I didn't let him know every day just how much he means to me, and something happened to him, I'd always regret the things we never did."

The other girls were silent as they considered her words. They drifted into an exhausted sleep still thinking about it.

Chimera slept late the next morning, until the link exploded, an overwhelming rage wiping the blocks they had against accidental intrusions away as if they were tissue paper. The rage grew and built, joined by a wildly despairing grief, deep enough to bring tears to all their eyes. Under the grief was fear, and self loathing.

"James!" Rose knew this touch, she'd known it all her life, but never had she felt James like this. Rose was halfway out of the common room before the rest of Chimera could shield enough to think coherently, let alone act, but they streamed after her, Wands and weapons in hand.

Rose could feel James, and she knew that the boy that was supposed to be sleeping in the Infirmary had no business on the far side of the lake. He was doing something also. Something magical and Tiffany, usually the brake on his impetuousness was actively helping him.

In the main Hall, Professors Snape and McGonagall were on their way out of breakfast when Ginny Potter appeared with Miranda. "They're gone, both of them."

The two Professors looked at each other and Professor McGonagall went to find the Headmaster. Ginny was nearly beside herself. "Where could they be?"

Professor Snape looked up. "Ask her." The two Healers looked back. Rose was taking the stairs four steps at a time, and hit a stair with the edge of her foot, falling the last seven stairs. The three adults didn't have a chance to move, as she rolled with the fall, coming up in that dead run toward the main doors.

Professor Snape stepped in front of her, expecting her to stop, but Rose stutter stepped to go around him. The Potions Master grabbed for her, catching her nightshirt, and slowing her. Her head whipped around, still full of the emotions swamping the link. Rose uttered a short phrase in Lakota and Professor Snape had one short second realize he was in trouble.

Rose's eyes changed, becoming something older than humanity and the Being sharing the young girl's body held both hands out, fingers spread.

Professor Snape was blown across the main hall, flying toward the far wall as if kicked by a dragon. The Professor's career and life might have ended then and there if Professor Dumbledore had not entered the Hall in time to see him heading for a sudden stop, headfirst into the wall. He reacted as he had where Harry had fallen off his broom so many years ago, first slowing and then cushioning the impact, and still it was not enough.

Professor Snape hit the wall with the ugly crack of breaking bones and fell to the floor, silent and limp.

Rose hadn't even noticed as she resumed her flight toward the doors. Professor Dumbledore did not know what was going on, only that James and Tiffany were missing, Rose had just thrown a Professor nearly twenty meters into a wall, and that he wanted more information. He glanced at the doors and they locked in response to his power.

Rose hit the door, and once again there was the sound of a bone breaking. She stopped, but before anyone could say anything, the Being/girl held out their hands again. The doors resisted, and Rose glowed, as a great bear shape, a swirling misty shape formed around her. The bear joined his magic to the Being and the girl.

Four seconds later, the front doors of Hogwarts simply ceased to exist, disappearing forever in an explosion that shook the hall. Splinters and dust were still shooting up when Rose went through the hole. The short battle had slowed her enough that the rest of Chimera was passing the Professors when she disappeared. Hangeld was the next one to go by, followed by the rest of them, almost all in their animal forms, as they would never catch Rose any other way.

Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall were joined by a dozen Manticores who had still been in breakfast when the explosion alerted them to something happening. They all streamed out of the doorway and were on the front steps of Hogwarts when Professor Dumbledore stopped.

The Headmaster of Hogwarts had certain spells available to him or her while they were the Headmaster. One of them warned the Headmaster of any dangerous buildup of Magic.

That spell was sounding in the Headmaster's head now. Somewhere on the other side of the lake, two people were joining, and sharing magic in a way he didn't understand. Of course, Albus Dumbledore can be excused for that, as he'd never had a Soulbond or its advantages.

Before Rose was at the lake, the swelling magic disappeared for a split second.

Then a flash of light bright enough to make the people on the steps squint exploded from the far side of the lake, and a second later, they heard the explosion. Even as they heard it, a dust cloud was rising, nearly thirty meters high.

Behind the group, another thump made them whirl around, the Manticores leading with Wands and knives. May-ling had further to go, and less muscle than the others. She'd barely reached the hall when James and Tiffany, under the twin prodding of self-loathing and guilt, did whatever they'd done, and disappeared from the links completely.

Not ever the faint feel of an unconscious person remained. Three seconds later, the worst case of linkshock any of them had ever felt dropped Chimera and May-ling like puppets with their strings cut.