Neither Severus nor Rachel slept that night. He watched her from his armchair, noting the way she occasionally rocked herself or held the blanket up to her face. Neither of them were ready for what had happened. He wasn't sure there was a way they could have been ready.
After breakfast, where Rachel picked at her eggs and toast while Severus managed dry toast and tea, he removed the bandage from her upper arm. He was relieved that the Healing salve had worked, and that the wound had not been more complicated. Rachel didn't need to carry a visual reminder of her experience.
A shower and clean clothes helped clear Severus' mind, and when he went back into the sitting room he found Rachel also showered and changed.
"Albus and I would like to see your memory of what happened last night, in his pensieve. It will help us identify the Death Eaters who answered the Dark Lord's call, and perhaps help us to understand how this resurrection was performed. However, if you don't feel like you're ready, it can wait another day," Severus offered, though he knew the sooner Albus had the information, the better.
"It's just pulling it from my mind, right? I don't have to talk about it?" Rachel asked.
"That's right, though Albus may have a question or two after he sees the memory," he said, wavering on just telling Albus that it would have to wait.
"I can do it now," Rachel said, getting to her feet and smoothing her skirt.
"I'll fire-call Albus and see if he's available right now," Severus said. He tossed the floo powder into the fireplace. "Headmaster's office. Albus, are you available to see us now?"
There was a moment of silence before Albus answered. "Yes, please come through."
Rachel stepped into the green flames without prompting and Severus followed a moment later.
"How are you this morning, Rachel?" Albus asked. He looked as though he'd aged a decade overnight.
Rachel took a long moment to answer. "I'll be alright," she said at last.
Severus was somewhat relieved she wasn't trying to say that she was fine, but it spoke to how unwell she must feel if she didn't say that she was fine.
"You will be," Albus said with a nod. "And you, Severus?"
"As well as can be expected under the circumstances," Severus said, weighing his next question in his mind before deciding to ask it even though Rachel was present. "Has there been news since last night?"
"Come sit down," Albus said, waving them in the direction of his desk. The pensieve was already sitting out, though it was empty of memories. "Barty Crouch is in Saint Mungo's. They found his emaciated form in his house, under the Draught of Living Death. From his rather severe haircut, it is clear he was being used for Polyjuice. There has been no further sign of Professor Karkaroff, however the Durmstrang students seem to be managing themselves for now. The Minister is currently ignoring my owls. I will attempt to speak with him later today. I should have more information for you tomorrow."
"Will Mr. Crouch live?" Rachel asked.
"I'm afraid I don't know. He'll be in recovery for some time at the very least," Albus said. "We're also not certain at which point he was replaced, or for that matter, by who."
"It seems reasonable to assume he was replaced prior to the end of October, if he was the one who placed Rachel's name in the Goblet," Severus said. He had given some thought to the mysterious Polyjuiced Death Eater over the night, but he didn't have any ideas who it could be. Possibly the same person who released Pettigrew from the Ministry last summer.
"That does seem like a reasonable assumption, given the way events played out. Rachel, I must offer an apology to you. It has become clear to me that we did not do enough to safeguard you, or the other champions, last night," Albus said, his gaze focused on Rachel.
"Thank you, sir, but I'm not really sure what else you could have done. I don't see how anyone could have known what was going to happen," Rachel said.
"You're far too forgiving. At the very least I should have insisted that all of you were being more carefully watched during your time in the maze, so that the rescues would have been more timely," Albus said.
"Are Cedric, Viktor, and Fleur okay? Did something happen?" Rachel asked, looking more alert than Severus had seen her in several hours.
"Fleur was already released from the hospital wing and has returned to the carriage with the rest of the Beauxbatons students. Viktor has woken, and should be released from the hospital wing later today. Cedric is also recovering well, I think we can expect him in the Great Hall for the ceremony tonight," Albus said. "Mr. Bagman will be presenting you with a replica of the Triwizard Cup and with your winnings in a small ceremony at dinner tonight."
Rachel turned to Severus. "Do I have to?"
"It will be very brief, he will announce that you won the tournament, give you your winnings, and then you can return to your table. You don't have to make a speech," Severus said, though he could understand Rachel's reluctance.
Rachel bit her lip and nodded.
"I am very proud of you, Rachel. Your performance was truly exemplary," Albus said.
"I cheated," she said, looking at Albus and then back to Severus. "I didn't go through the maze, I just used the Cutting hex to cut through the hedges until I made it to the center."
Albus smiled, the lines on his face easing slightly. "That's not cheating, there was nothing in the rules that said you must navigate the maze. There is always more than one way to approach a problem and I'm gratified that you can recognize this and think outside of the box. I would like to ask you if Severus and I can view your memory of last evening, starting right before you left the maze to when you returned to the Quidditch pitch by portkey. Would you be willing to let us see it?"
Rachel nodded and pulled out her wand before moving so that she was standing in front of the pensieve.
"Rachel, I want you to make a copy of your memory, rather than parting with the memory entirely," Severus said, also standing. "Focus on the memory, particularly the start of it, and then think the incantation replimoria as you pull your wand away from your temple."
"Okay. What will happen if I do it wrong?" she asked.
"Then it will take the memory instead of copying it, and we will simply put it back afterward." He was glad she was learning to ask those questions before attempting a new spell.
Rachel closed her eyes and held her wand to her temple. She swayed a little bit and then mouthed the incantation while pulling the strands of memory away from herself and depositing them into the pensieve. "I think it worked, I can still remember."
"Very good. Rachel, would you mind waiting here while Severus and I view the memory? Would you like a cup of tea with biscuits while you wait?" Albus asked.
"No, thank you," Rachel said as she sat back down. "I can wait."
"Tap my arm hard if you need anything and I will emerge," Severus directed, moving so that he could access the pensieve.
He touched the memory the moment after Albus did and found himself dropped down into the maze. Rachel was pushing her way through a hedge, which explained all of the scratches on her arms and legs, and he watched with Albus as she climbed out and carefully looked in each direction before proceeding. It didn't take them long to reach the Cup.
"She did an excellent job in the maze. You've done well with her," Albus said through the whirl of the portkey.
"She works very hard," Severus said, not willing to take credit for Rachel's work.
"I mean in far more than just her spell casting. She's made tremendous progress these past four years, and that's in no small part due to the care that you have given her. I credit you both, Severus," Albus said, stepping forward to get a closer look at the man approaching Rachel.
Rachel dropped to the ground with a scream, though Severus did not see anyone cast a spell at her.
"She reacts to more than just Voldemort's presence," Albus observed. "He's already learning to use the link between them."
Severus frowned, following as Pettigrew dragged Rachel across the graveyard. "He could debilitate her if he chose to do so. Is there no way to close the link between them?"
"None that I have found. I keep coming back to occlumency. It should, theoretically, work. It's possible the connection between them is somehow beneath Rachel's occlumency shield. If this continues, I believe you will need to work with her to enter her mind and see what you can find," Albus said. "At the very least, Voldemort is predictable. The grave of the father he murdered."
The baby version of the Dark Lord was grotesque, but Severus kept finding himself watching Rachel. Now that the pain had stopped she seemed almost blank. Severus couldn't tell if it was a form of shock or if she was purposefully hiding her emotions.
Severus didn't flinch when Pettigrew cut off his hand, but he could understand why the imagery of it would haunt Rachel. He saw fear in Rachel's eyes when Pettigrew came toward her with his knife, and relief when he didn't take anything more than blood.
"Bone of the father, flesh of the servant, blood of the enemy," Albus said. "Old sacrificial magic. Very old. I would be curious to know where he learned it."
The Dark Lord was just as grotesque in his adult body, his features inhuman, his gaze red. Severus found himself hoping that he never had the misfortune to meet the Dark Lord in this form.
When the Death Eaters arrived they began to walk around the circle, taking mental notes. Lucius Malfoy. Alecto and Amycus Carrow. Ignatius Nott. Ambrosia and Wardell Parkinson. Francis Crabbe. Marxius Goyle. Bertrand Baddock. Matthew Pike. Maxwell Acker. Abraham Jugson. Matthew Turner. Thorfinn Rowle. Walden Macnair. Corban Yaxley. Alfred Selwyn. Pritchard Gibbon. The list went on. The Dark Lord's inner circle once again rejoined.
Finally Crouch apparated into the circle and Severus saw his shock reflected in Albus' expression. "Barty Crouch Junior? How is that possible?" Severus asked.
"I believe we will have to ask Barty Crouch Senior to discover that," Albus said.
Severus watched with clenched jaw as the Dark Lord cut Rachel free to 'duel' her, reminding himself that she made it back safely and was currently sitting in the same office where he really was.
"She can resist his Imperius curse," Albus whispered, his eyes focused on where Rachel had knelt on the ground.
It was a good first step, but Rachel needed to be able to do more than sit blankly while under the Imperius curse. Unfortunately the only training method Severus knew was from his time as a Death Eater and he wasn't sure he could even bring himself to cast the Imperius curse on his own child, even if it was for a good cause. He winced as Rachel screamed while under the Cruciatus. No child should ever experience that sort of pain.
Rachel acquitted herself well, rising back to her feet after each bout with the Cruciatus. Severus had seen Death Eaters who hadn't managed as well.
And then their wands connected, a strand of golden light going from tip to tip.
Severus was about to ask why, but he noticed that Albus was fixated on the scene. His questions could wait, if Albus was searching for something specific.
"Good," Albus said quietly, nodding in Rachel's direction as the beads of golden light started moving toward the Dark Lord.
"She's doing that?" Severus asked.
"She is. You've been teaching her to channel her magic into her wand."
"The basics," Severus said. It seemed he had more work to do with Rachel. Much more.
"Good," Albus said again.
Even Rachel's warning that she'd spoken with her parents couldn't prepare Severus for what happened next. A woman, nearly a ghost, but somehow more substantial, fell from the Dark Lord's wand.
"Bertha Jorkins," Albus said when another ghost-like woman appeared.
Severus nodded, recalling his conversation with Albus months ago. Albus wasn't right about everything, but much of the time he had an uncanny ability to connect seemingly unrelated events.
And then it was Lily.
Severus stared, transfixed. This was the closest he'd come to seeing her since Lily had gone into hiding just over fourteen years ago. Seeing her corpse that Halloween night didn't count.
The ghost-like figure of James joined them and Severus watched helplessly as they gave instructions to Rachel and told her that they loved her. A few moments later they were back in the whirlwind of the portkey.
Severus emerged from the pensieve without waiting for Albus. He found Rachel sitting where he'd left her, but she now had Fawkes resting on her shoulder. Her eyes were closed and her head was tilted to rest against Fawkes' body, and Fawkes was crooning softly to her.
"It seems that you have a way with animals," Albus said quietly. "There's not many Fawkes would choose to sit with."
Rachel opened her eyes. "He came to me. It was very nice."
"The song of the phoenix is very powerful, much like a phoenix's tears, they have the power to help mend," Albus said as he took his seat. "Did you have any questions for me about what happened last night?"
"Was that really my parents that I saw? Their souls or their spirits?" Rachel asked.
Severus nearly grimaced as he sat down next to her. Of course that would be her first question. "Not their souls. It was an impression of them. Like speaking with a portrait or a ghost," he explained.
"Are there any portraits of my parents?" Rachel asked, turning her head carefully so that she didn't jostle Fawkes.
"I'm afraid not," Albus said. "Usually wizarding portraits are done much later in a witch or a wizard's life so that they can encapsulate as much of their life experience and memories as possible."
Rachel nodded ever so slightly. "That's okay, I still have pictures of them, even though the pictures don't talk. It was nice to hear them though."
"Why did Rachel's and the Dark Lord's wands connect in such a manner? I'm not familiar with any spells or rituals that would do that," Severus asked.
"Rachel and Voldemort's wands are brothers, they are what is called a twin core wand. Each of them contains a phoenix feather from Fawkes, the only feathers he's ever given," Albus explained.
Severus arched his eyebrow at Albus. He was just now telling him this? "What does that mean in practical terms?"
"The wands will resist fighting each other. The effect we saw is called priori incantatem. The winning wand in the battle forced the losing wand to call forth the spells it has last cast, in reverse order. I imagine if you had remained longer you would have seen more individuals who had been killed by Voldemort in the last days of the war," Albus said.
"I couldn't have held on any longer. For a while I couldn't let go at all, but by the end I was barely holding on," Rachel said.
"That's quite alright, you did very well," Albus said.
"Does Rachel need to get a new wand so she can defend herself against the Dark Lord?" Severus asked. He had no intention of Rachel going anywhere near the Dark Lord again, but it made sense to still be prepared.
"No. For the time being she should continue to use her own wand. At a later time, we may ask Garrick Ollivander to fit her with a wand made specifically for her. But not yet, she is not ready yet," Albus said.
Deciding that Albus knew much more about wand lore than he did, Severus let it rest.
"Did you have any other questions, Rachel?" Albus asked.
"What do we do, now that he's back?" she asked.
"I am recalling the Order of the Phoenix to service. I will also continue to attempt to encourage the Ministry and the rest of wizarding Britain to understand that Voldemort has returned and that the time to act is now. For you, Rachel, I want you to continue to live your life. Study, spend time with your friends, play Quidditch. Severus will prepare you with all that you need to know. One thing I would like you to pay attention to is your dreams and to the feelings in your scar. Please notice if there are any patterns or unfamiliar dreams. Let Severus know if your scar hurts or if there are any other odd sensations coming from it. Let him know immediately if you experience dreams or visions where Voldemort appears."
"Shouldn't I be doing more?" Rachel asked.
"No," Severus answered. "You will have enough on your plate. I will be training you, and you will have your OWLs next year. You are not fighting in this war."
"Severus is correct, it is not time for you to fight," Albus said.
Severus eyed Albus. If he thought he was ever going to put Rachel into combat while she was a student, they were going to have words.
"Will my memory help convince the Minister that the Dark Lord is back?" she asked.
"I can only hope so. Minister Fudge is a man who is being ruled by his fear. I hope that he can rise above it," Albus said. "Is there anything else you'd like to ask?"
Rachel shook her head and turned to Severus, still mindful of the large bird on her shoulder. "Can I go see my friends?"
"Yes. Don't go searching for them by yourself, send a Patronus message rather than wandering the castle," Severus instructed.
"Thanks," Rachel said. "Fawkes, thank you for singing to me, it was very nice. I'm going to go now."
Fawkes let out a trill and gently launched himself off of Rachel's shoulder.
"I'll see you in the Great Hall for dinner, but come to my quarters if you need me sooner," Severus said.
"I will," Rachel said, getting up and exiting Albus' office.
"How is she doing?" Albus asked.
"It's too soon to tell. Give her a few days to adjust," Severus said. He would settle for Rachel sleeping and eating.
Albus nodded. "I'm going to need your help this summer. We have a lot of work to do before the Order is fully operational."
"I'll be there," Severus said, having expected as much. "What do you intend to do about the Minister?"
"Try to make him see reason."
"And when that fails?" Severus knew that it would. Fudge had always been a weak man.
"Then we will act accordingly," Albus said, exhaustion evident in his gaze.
That would have to be good enough.
Rachel left Professor Dumbledore's office feeling a little more steady than she had since she'd gone into the maze yesterday. She didn't know much about phoenixes, but something in Fawkes' song had helped the storm of thoughts that was raging in her mind slow down. Her thoughts were now less a tempest and more a passing spring rain.
She didn't have to use her Patronus to know where her friends were. And if they weren't in the study room, she'd check the Slytherin common room for Millie and Theo.
"Rachel!" Ginny called as soon as the door was open.
"Thank Merlin," Neville said.
Rachel tried to give them a smile and found she couldn't do it. She shut the door behind herself and accepted the one armed hug from Millie before she sat down at her usual place at the table.
"I feel like 'how are you?' and 'are you okay?' are a little bit stupid questions to be asking right now, but I don't know what else to ask," Hermione said.
Rachel wasn't okay. Not yet at least. "I don't really want to talk about what happened, but there are some things you need to know."
"Okay," Hermione said.
"You can tell us however you'd like, even if it's writing it down," Luna offered.
Rachel considered it, but decided that she wasn't about to write down what happened in the graveyard anywhere. That was too dangerous information to have lying about, even if they just burned it afterward. "The Dark Lord is back. I saw him be...I don't know. Resurrected? Reborn?"
"That's what the rumors have been saying. Not the part about him being reborn, but the part where he's back and that you saw him," Ginny said.
"I hate to ask, but how is that even possible?" Hermione asked.
"There was a potion and I think it might have been a ritual or something, I don't really know much about how ritual magic works. But he was possessing a baby, and then afterward he was in his own body. Not a fully human body either. He still looks human for the most part, but his features-" Rachel broke off with a shudder. This was getting too close to things she didn't want to think about. "He summoned his Death Eaters. Theo, your father was there."
Theo jerked his head in an approximation of a nod. "That's to be expected, I suppose."
"Did you know that your father has the Dark Mark?" Rachel asked.
"No, what's that?" Theo asked.
"The Dark Lord's most loyal Death Eaters have a mark on their left forearm, a snake coming out of a skull. The Dark Lord can summon his Death Eaters to his location with it," Rachel explained.
"Well that's just stupid," Hermione said.
Everyone in the room peered at her.
"Well it is! Why not just tattoo 'I'm a terrorist' on their arms? How did they not get caught like that?" Hermione asked.
"Money," Theo said. "Those who were suspected pretended to be victims under the Imperius curse, but really, it's because they could bribe people."
"Professor Snape also thinks there are Death Eaters or Death Eater sympathizers in the MLE, both now and when the war ended," Rachel added.
"Then how did some of them wind up in Azkaban? I mean, some of them were still rich," Ginny said with a glance at Neville.
"You mean how did the Lestranges end up in Azkaban?" Neville asked directly. "They bragged about it. My Gran told me that when they were questioned, they bragged about what they'd done."
Rachel shivered. Having experienced the Cruciatus curse for a short period of time, she had a whole new sympathy for what Neville's parents had gone through. She couldn't even bring herself to imagine that going on and on with no end in sight.
"Do you know who the other Death Eaters were that showed up?" Theo asked.
"Draco's father, Alice's father, the Carrow twin's mother and uncle, um, there were about thirty people there. Crabbe and Goyle's fathers. There were some names I didn't recognize. Mulciber. Selwyn," Rachel said, trying to remember without going back into the memory itself.
"Selwyn?" Neville asked, looking entirely shocked. "Which one?"
"I don't know. He addressed some of them by last name, some by first," Rachel said.
"The Selwyns are a very old family," Luna said. "My father knows some of them quite well."
"My Gran has tea with Annette Selwyn every Wednesday," Neville said.
"It was a man," Rachel said, trying to focus. "Most of them were men. Oh, both Pansy's parents were there as well. Theo, is it safe for you to go home this summer?"
To his credit, Theo didn't answer right away. "I think it's as safe as it's going to be. My father will expect me to serve the Dark Lord at some point, but the Dark Lord isn't going to want someone as young as me, I haven't even taken my OWLs yet. Right now I'll be seen as an asset to my father, not as my own person. I might get orders, such as spying on Rachel, or told to leave the study group entirely, but I doubt he would take me in front of the Dark Lord yet. When that time comes, I'll have to run for it."
"Send your Patronus to me when you do have to run, I'll get Professor Snape to come help you. In fact, for now, come to Hogwarts. I'll ask Professor Snape if he wants you to do something differently," Rachel said.
"I could also ask him myself," Theo pointed out.
"You could, but the Dark Lord is aware that Professor Snape betrayed him, and by now your father will be aware too," Rachel said.
Theo nodded. "So best to keep my distance except for in class, because the others can report back to their parents what I do."
"And if your father tells you to leave the study group, we'll make sure you can attend in secret. We might have to move ourselves up to the seventh floor and arrive separately, but you can pretend you found somewhere quiet and out of the way to study," Millie said, placing her hand on Theo's shoulder.
"Absolutely. And if you're asked to spy on Rachel we'll come up with a misinformation campaign that keeps you safe and keeps any actual information out of Death Eater hands," Hermione said.
It was good to have a plan, but it didn't stop Rachel from worrying. They were sending Theo home to an active Death Eater. What if the Dark Lord visited their home?
"Thanks. We'll have to be careful, but I think my father is well enough convinced that I've made friends with Draco and Pansy and that I've made connections with Jacob and Avery. No idea what the Carrow twins will say about me, if they say anything at all. They're hard to read," Theo said.
Rachel allowed her attention to be pulled back to the conversation. "There's two other things you should know. The first is that I don't think we've ever met the real Mr. Crouch. A Death Eater was using Polyjuice to take his place. We're pretty sure that Death Eater was the one that entered my name in the tournament."
"What happened to the real Mr. Crouch? You have to take the component of the person you're turning into from a living person," Hermione asked.
"He's in Saint Mungo's, they're not sure if he's going to survive," Rachel said. "Draught of Living Death, I think is what Professor Dumbledore said."
"In many cases it becomes actual death rather than living death. The antidote has to be proportionally stronger the longer the person has been under the potion," Luna said with a thoughtful expression.
"Perhaps if he recovers he can tell them who was Polyjuiced as him. That's definitely a crime," Millie said. "What was the other thing, Rachel?"
"The Minister doesn't believe that the Dark Lord is back."
There was a long silence as everyone took in that piece of information.
"How much sway does the Minister have in matters such as these?" Hermione asked.
"Depends on if he convinces the Wizengamot," Neville said.
"Neville's right," Theo said. "If he convinces the Wizengamot, then that's the entire government's response. The Wizengamot itself is pretty split on whether it supports Fudge, but with something like this, with no evidence, I think they'll throw their support behind Fudge."
"They have a copy of my memory," Rachel said.
"Memories can be tampered with," Ginny said. "My dad has told me about it, because he liaises with the MLE for some of his work. People will have their memories changed so they can lie about not committing a crime, and not even know they're lying."
"And if anyone could create a legitimate looking memory, it would be Professor Dumbeldore," Millie said with a frown.
"But why?" Hermione asked. "Why would Professor Dumbledore do that?"
"Because it hits on two things that Fudge fears. Professor Dumbledore taking power, and the Dark Lord returning. It may be wrong, but Fudge has every reason to deny this and I don't think he'll stop," Theo said.
"So what do we do?" Hermione asked.
"Professor Dumbledore is recalling the Order of the Phoenix. I suppose the rest of us just have to prepare ourselves. I'll keep teaching all of you any spells that Professor Snape teaches me. And now we have a place where we can actually practice Defense," Rachel said.
Hermione frowned. "And we just let the Minister and the entire government ignore this?"
"I don't think there's anything we can do about this," Millie said. "No one is going to listen to us."
"I'll talk to my father. Maybe he can print something in The Quibbler," Luna offered.
"That might not be a good idea," Theo said. "We don't want Death Eaters to target your family."
"Would they?" Hermione asked as she looked around the table.
"If You-Know-Who thought they were a threat, then he would," Neville said. "I agree with Theo. We're out of our depth here. It's not that I don't want to do something, but I don't want to see anyone needlessly killed or tortured either."
Rachel nodded. People needed to know the Dark Lord was back, but they needed to find a better way. She just had no idea what that might be.
"Rachel, we thought we'd have lunch in here today, if you wanted," Ginny offered.
"Yeah, I don't really want to see people right now. Tonight will be bad enough," Rachel said, grateful that she at least had some time before the ceremony at dinner.
"You could skip," Millie said, a hint of a mischievous smile on her lips. "What are they going to do? Give you detention?"
"I already asked Professor Snape if I could skip and he said no," Rachel said, relieved to feel their conversation going back to normal topics.
"That's why you don't ask first," Ginny said. "Then you do whatever it was you were going to do, and tell them that you thought they wouldn't mind. Sometimes you still get in trouble, but it works more often than you'd think."
"I used to do that," Hermione said, her smile a little sad. "It will be a bit weird going home this summer. I don't think I can tell my parents that You-Know-Who has returned."
"They'll send you away from Hogwarts?" Luna asked.
"If they understood, they would. I'd probably wind up at Beauxbatons, and while my French is passable I don't particularly want to take all my lessons in it," Hermione said, as if that was the only reason she didn't want to go to Beauxbatons.
"Well, I'm not going to tell you how to deal with your parents, but things may reach a point where you have no choice," Theo said.
"Hopefully I'll be at least seventeen by the time that happens," Hermione said.
Millie winced slightly and looked away.
Rachel frowned as she looked around the room. It was hard to tell how much was going to change and how quickly. In a way they were waiting again. Waiting to see what the Dark Lord would do. Waiting to see what the Ministry would do. They'd just have to do the best they could in the meantime.
The Great Hall was already crowded when they arrived and Rachel had to resist the urge to turn around and leave. There were already people looking at her and then turning to whisper to their neighbors. She was relieved to see Fleur sitting at the Ravenclaw table with the rest of the Beauxbatons students. Fleur didn't seem any worse for the wear considering last evening.
She was even more relieved when she saw Cedric at the Hufflepuff table. "I'll be at the Slytherin table in a moment, I just need to see Cedric," she told Millie and Theo.
"We'll save you a place," Millie said.
Cedric stood up as soon as he saw Rachel approaching. "Are you alright?"
"Alright enough," Rachel said. "Are you? It seemed like you were badly hurt."
"Madam Pomfrey fixed my bones easily enough, and the rest too. I'm still a little bit sore, but much better than I was. I was trampled by something, I didn't even get a good look at it," Cedric said.
"I'm sorry. I should have sent up sparks when I heard you screaming. I just didn't think of it," she said.
"No, there's nothing for you to be sorry for. You had no way of knowing what was happening," Cedric said, shaking his head. "And, you won. Congratulations."
"Thanks," Rachel said, though the last thing she wanted was to be congratulated. "Could you do me a favor?"
"Sure," Cedric said.
Rachel raised an eyebrow at his easy answer. "Can you ask Fleur and Viktor to meet with us in the training room on the seventh floor at lunch time tomorrow, right after second period? Just the four of us?"
"I'll make sure they're there," he said. "Should I tell them what it's about?"
"Just wrapping things up. We shouldn't just have the third task be the end of it," she said vaguely, not wanting to tell him what she was planning.
"You're right. It's good that we've made friends with them, even though we were competing," Cedric said. "I think dinner's about to start."
Rachel glanced around and saw that most people had taken their seats. "I'll see you tomorrow."
"You will," Cedric said, heading back to his seat between Heidi and Martin.
Rachel went back to the Slytherin table and sat down between Theo and Millie.
"We've been waiting for you. No one has seen you all day," Draco said, his eyebrows raised as he looked at her.
"Yesterday was a long day," Rachel said, not wanting to fight with Draco.
"You have to come down to the common room after dinner. We're having a party. We would have had a party last night, but no one knew for sure who won until today," Draco said.
"By the way, congratulations," Daphne said from a few seats down.
"Yes, congratulations," Blaise said. "How did you do it?"
"Um, I cut through the hedges using the Cutting hex and avoided all of the creatures and obstacles," Rachel said, feeling herself blush. This hadn't been exactly something she'd been planning to announce, but she didn't have a better answer for them either.
To her surprise Theo started laughing.
"What?" Rachel asked.
"It's just a very Slytherin solution," Theo said, smiling for what seemed like the first time that day.
"It is. Cunning without being reckless," Pansy said. "Just think, you didn't even want to be in the tournament and now you've won it."
Rachel would have rather avoided both the tournament and winning the tournament, but it was far too late for that now.
"It is very impressive," Draco said. "You're not even fifteen yet, while Viktor and Fleur are both eighteen and Cedric is seventeen. There's not many people our year who could even compete with that, let alone win."
"I had a lot of help. Millie and Theo helped me a lot and so did the rest of my friends," Rachel said, wanting to mention Severus but knowing that she shouldn't. He probably couldn't get in trouble for helping her now that the tournament was over, but she wasn't going to risk it.
"Even so," Draco said, his expression thoughtful.
"If I may have everyone's attention," Professor Dumbledore called.
Rachel sighed. This was it then. She leaned so she could get a better look at the staff table. All of the professors were there, along with Mr. Bagman and Madame Maxime. Professor Karkaroff was gone, presumably fleeing from the Death Eaters, and Mr. Crouch of course was still in Saint Mungo's.
"At this time we would like to announce the winner of the Triwizard Tournament. First, I would like for all of our champions to stand," Professor Dumbledore said.
Rachel stood, seeing Viktor stand further down the Slytherin table.
"I offer all of them a hearty congratulations. Each champion has shown us their bravery and their skills and above all else, their kindness," Professor Dumbledore said, and the Great Hall broke out into applause.
"And now, I present to you the winner of the Triwizard Cup. From Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Rachel Snow," he announced.
There was more applause and Rachel made her way up to the staff table at Professor Dumbledore's nod to her.
Mr. Bagman stepped forward and shook her hand and Rachel blinked into a flash of light from someone's camera.
"I am proud to present Rachel Snow with the Triwizard Cup, a symbol of her excellence throughout this competition. Rachel Snow also receives the prize of one thousand Galleons," Mr. Bagman said, handing Rachel a pouch and then holding a smaller version of the Triwizard Cup with her name engraved on the bottom and the year. There was another flash from the photographer's camera.
"Way to go, Rachel!" someone in the Great Hall shouted and there were more cheers.
Mostly she just felt embarrassed, but she was surprised by the small flush of pride she felt as well. At least she had represented Hogwarts well. She hurried back to her seat, shoving the pouch in her robe pocket and holding the Triwizard Cup and trying not to think of portkeys.
"I'd like to thank everyone here for joining together to make this tournament happen, from the representatives at the Ministry, to our judges, and to all of our students. I have seen the start of many wonderful friendships begin this year and I hope they continue to flourish. Everyone in this hall is welcome at Hogwarts. And now, for your feast!" Professor Dumbledore clapped his hands together twice and food appeared on the tables.
"At least it was quick," Millie said.
"Yeah. I wonder what sort of article is going to accompany that picture though," Rachel said. She didn't know how far the rumors of the Dark Lord's return had spread, but she was sure it was going to be a mess once it got beyond Hogwarts.
"How are you going to spend the money, Rachel?" Daphne asked.
"Books, probably," Rachel said, causing several people to laugh. In truth she knew exactly what she was going to do with the money, it would just have to wait until tomorrow.
She managed to eat some, even though her stomach had been unsettled since yesterday. She had hoped that she would feel better once the tournament had finished, but it felt like a new and even worse problem had taken its place. She wondered what Torey would say about how to stop worrying about something that actually needed worrying about.
"You're coming down to the common room, right Rachel?" Draco pressed near the end of the feast, when only the desserts remained.
"For a little bit," Rachel said, knowing that Theo needed to put in an appearance, now more than ever.
Rachel, Millie, and Theo paused as they left the Great Hall to tell the rest of their study group that they had a party to go to and would see them the next day. Hermione looked like she in particular empathized. Everyone knew Hermione would much rather be in the library than at any sort of party.
"I'll be around," Theo said quietly to them before he disappeared into the common room.
On their way to their usual spot, Rachel stopped and accepted congratulations from the Quidditch team, most of the prefects, and many other students that she barely knew their names. She supposed she probably should get to know more people in her own House, but it felt like she already knew more people than she knew what to do with.
"Whew, I thought they'd never stop," Millie said as she dropped down onto the couch.
"At least they're not coming up to me asking to help me open the Chamber of Secrets," Rachel said. She supposed that too was part of her reluctance to make more friends within her own House.
"Thank Merlin that mess is over with. And now the tournament is too. I'm almost afraid to wonder what will happen next year," Millie said.
"Me too," Rachel said, though she was less worried about what was going to happen at Hogwarts and more worried about what would happen with the Dark Lord and the Ministry.
A few more people trickled over to congratulate her and Rachel dutifully answered their questions about what it was like in the maze. Some of them seemed almost disappointed that Rachel didn't get into a battle with some monstrous creature.
"Hey, Rachel. Can I talk to you for a moment?" Draco asked.
"Sure," Rachel said, though she had long ago stopped trying to guess what Draco wanted from her.
"Just you," Draco said, his gaze sliding to Millie.
"I'm not leaving the common room," Rachel said, knowing that the words 'with you' didn't need to be said.
"How about over in that corner and I'll use a privacy ward," Draco said, pointing to the corner near one of the windows. The giant squid was nowhere to be seen today.
"Alright," Rachel said, getting to her feet. She followed Draco and wondered if the spying on her for their parents thing worked in reverse. She'd certainly pass on any information she got from Draco to Severus. She watched the flash of the privacy ward take hold, a little impressed by Draco's skill. She didn't know how to cast a privacy ward yet and he had been casting silently all year.
"Is it true?" Draco asked immediately.
Rachel hesitated, knowing exactly what he was asking. She supposed he deserved to know what he was going home to. "Yes."
"And the Death Eaters were there?" he asked.
"Yes, your father was there," Rachel said, answering the question he didn't ask.
"But not my mother?" Draco's brow furrowed for a moment.
"Not that I saw," she said. "If you need help, you can ask Professor Snape. He'll help you. I can ask him for you if you want."
Draco stood up straighter. "Why would I need help?"
"If you're scared to go home, or if you want to get away from it," Rachel said, hoping that Draco would say yes.
"I don't know what you think about me and my family, but I'm certainly not afraid of going home. I'm not afraid of anything," Draco said. "If anything, you should be afraid."
"I am," Rachel said, entirely honestly. She decided not to press. Draco needed time and trying to get him to ask for help right now was not going to work. "Did you have any other questions for me?"
Draco looked like he was on the verge of asking something before he sharply shook his head. "No. Thank you," he said, dispelling the privacy ward.
Rachel went back to the couch and sat down next to Millie again. Suddenly she thought she could sleep. She was very tired.
"What was all that about?" Millie asked.
"He wanted to know if the Dark Lord was really back. I told him that he was. I'm kind of done with this party. Do we want to go back to our dorm room?" Rachel asked.
Millie nodded. "Let's find Theo first and say goodnight, assuming we won't mess anything up for him."
"Okay," Rachel said. If Theo was with certain people they'd just let him be.
She thought about her bed and hoped that she was simply too tired to dream.
It had taken some work to convince Theo and Millie that she was fine to meet with the other champions alone. Their compromise was that they'd walk Rachel to the Room of Requirement and Rachel would wait there for them to come back. Rachel had wanted to point out that with Professor Karkaroff and fake Mr. Crouch gone, there weren't really any threats in the castle other than students whose families supported the Dark Lord. She had decided against that argument with the realization that really anyone could be using Polyjuice to disguise themselves.
Hogwarts was supposed to be the safest place, but the Death Eater who had impersonated Mr. Crouch showed just how easy it was to get into the school without raising any suspicion at all. What if Mr. Crouch had asked her to go somewhere with him to talk about the tournament? Would she have gone? She didn't know and that bothered her more than a little bit.
Rachel had summoned the same training room that they'd been using, not wanting them to know the room could be more than just the training room, but when she went in she found a comfortable set of couches waiting in the center of the room. Even though she'd used the exact same thoughts she'd been using when summoning the room before, it clearly knew she wasn't planning on training. She made a note of it to tell Hermione later, it could be another test that they could run on the room when they had the time. If they ever had the time. Her goal for her fifth year at Hogwarts to be peaceful and quiet seemed far-fetched at best.
She'd only been waiting for a few minutes when the door opened and Cedric, Viktor, and Fleur entered. "Thanks for coming," she called.
"We had some questions for you too," Viktor said, taking a seat on one of the couches.
Rachel supposed she should have expected this, but they deserved to know the gist of what happened. She didn't feel ready to go into the details yet. Maybe not ever. "You can ask questions, but I want to do something first," she said as she stood up. She rummaged through her bag and pulled out three small pouches, which she'd transfigured from old socks last night. She gave each of them a pouch, having to hold it in Cedric's hand to force him to take it.
"You don't have to do this," Cedric said, clearly knowing what was in the pouches.
"I want to. This is important to me," Rachel said, meeting his eyes.
"The winnings. You're giving them to us?" Fleur asked as she reached into the pouch.
"Split evenly between the four of us. We all earned them. All of us went through the tasks," Rachel said, sitting back down and folding her arms to indicate that she wasn't taking the money back.
"And what will your father say when he hears of this?" Viktor asked, one of his eyebrows raised.
"I'd like to know that too," Cedric said.
"I'll tell him it was my choice and that I didn't want to do anything else with the money. He really won't care. Honestly, I don't think he'll even notice," Rachel said, deciding to leave Viktor calling Severus her father alone.
"If you are sure this is what you wish to do?" Fleur asked.
"I'm sure," Rachel said.
"Then thank you," Fleur said.
"Yes, thank you," Cedric said. "I don't know that I particularly deserve it, but I promise I'll put it to good use."
"Thank you," Viktor said, looking contemplative. "I think I will use some of it to go visit my family before my team starts meeting again."
"Good, I hope you have a good time with them," Rachel said, glad that the money was going to be doing something other than sitting at the bottom of her trunk. The 250 Galleons she'd kept were currently there and she had no real plan for them other than to not bother refilling her pouch from Gringotts this summer. Probably for several summers, it was a lot of money.
"I would like to know what happened in the maze," Fleur said, glancing around their group.
"I was lost. I'd already fought some doxies and a hodag. I'm not sure how long I was in there, but I turned a corner and got trampled. I don't even know what got me. I passed out pretty quickly and then woke up in the hospital wing," Cedric said, shrugging with one shoulder.
"We heard you, but we couldn't find where you were," Rachel said, still feeling bad that she hadn't done more to help him.
"I'm alright now," Cedric said, reaching over and patting Rachel's knee.
"I was doing well. I fought a boggart and a fire crab. There was an obstacle where tendrils from the hedges came out and grabbed me, I burned them away. Then I walked into a white mist and people were trying to attack me. I tried to run from them while I fought, but I couldn't get away. One of them stunned me, and then I was in the hospital wing," Viktor explained.
"What sort of obstacle is that?" Cedric asked, just a hint of outrage in his voice.
"It sounds like a Disorientation Draught, but in the air instead of in a potion," Fleur said. "You must wait out the effects. A dose does not usually last more than ten or fifteen minutes, depending on the size of the person."
"What about being stunned?" Rachel asked.
"That might have been the professors who came to find us," Fleur said.
"Still doesn't seem particularly fair," Cedric said.
Rachel didn't think it did either. "What happened while you were in the maze, Fleur?"
"I came across the boggart as well, and a Sphinx, and a creature I don't have a name for. There was an obstacle where I was turned upside down, but the effect stopped when I moved. There was another obstacle, black waves of smoke in the air, but I turned back and took another path. When I reached the center there was an acromantula in the pathway. It took my leg in its jaw, and I cast a Blasting hex into its mouth. At the center there was only the pedestal, the cup was already gone," Fleur said.
Everyone looked to Rachel.
"I took the cup, but it was a portkey," Rachel said.
"How did you get there so quickly?" Fleur asked.
"I was cutting through the hedge with a Cutting hex. If I saw a creature or an obstacle, I cut through onto another path," Rachel said, looking down. "I should have called out while you were all close enough and told you what to do."
"No," Viktor said. "It was your strategy. You found a way to master the maze. You deserved to win."
"I agree," Fleur said.
"Me too," Cedric said. "What happened after you took the cup?"
Rachel tried to take a deep breath but her chest was already hurting. "I was portkeyed into a graveyard. I don't know where. Pettigrew and the Dark Lord were waiting. They captured me, and Pettigrew did a potion, or maybe a ritual, to bring the Dark Lord back into his own body."
Cedric looked pale. "You swear, Rachel? You swear on your magic that it's true, that he's back."
"I swear on my magic that I saw the Dark Lord reborn," Rachel said. She hadn't known that swearing on magic was a thing, but she didn't mind. She was telling the truth.
"How did he not kill you?" Fleur asked.
"He summoned his Death Eaters, there were about thirty of them. And then he gave me back my wand and said that we were going to duel. Then something happened, that I can't really explain. Professor Dumbledore understands it. But it stopped the Dark Lord, and I summoned the cup and it brought me back to the Quidditch pitch." Rachel didn't want to go into detail about her wand or about seeing her parents. That was private.
"And that is why our Headmaster left. Because he knew, and he is afraid," Viktor said with a nod.
"He should be. We all should be," Cedric said. "What will you do without your Headmaster? How will you get home?"
"Karkaroff did not sail the ship, we did. We will return fine. I do not know who will become Headmaster in his place, this was my last year of school," Viktor said.
"What do we do now?" Cedric asked.
That seemed to be everyone's question. "Professor Dumbledore is working on it. The Minister doesn't believe the Dark Lord is back. For the rest of us, I guess we do the same things we always do. You and your friends are always welcome to train with us," Rachel said. She wouldn't mind teaching Cedric the spells that Severus taught her.
"Thanks. I guess that's it then. The tournament is over," Cedric said.
"We all did well," Fleur said. "I'm proud of what we have done."
"We did," Viktor said as he stood up. "It was good to know you. Rachel, thank you for having me on your team. I was glad to fly with you."
"I enjoyed flying with you too. Thanks for teaching me," Rachel said, managing to smile at Viktor.
"You mean you made her more difficult to beat?" Cedric asked, getting up.
"You both fly well, you will be a good match," Viktor said, shaking Cedric's hand.
"I enjoyed our game of Chaser's Folly. I would like a rematch one day," Fleur said. "But for now, I would like lunch before the food is gone."
"Good idea," Cedric said. "Are you coming, Rachel?"
"No, but thank you. I'll see you around," Rachel said.
She watched as they left and then settled back on the couch. It was a little strange how attached she'd gotten to them. At the very least Cedric would be back at Hogwarts next year.
The silence was a little strange as well and Rachel realized that she hadn't really been alone in a long time. She watched as the sunlight trickled in through the window panes and decided she was looking forward to going home this summer. Fallow Farm was a lot quieter than Hogwarts.
Severus took his place at the staff table and looked out at the students who were slowly trickling in for the Leaving Feast. Another year complete. He couldn't tell if it was just that this year had been particularly stressful or if it was that every year had been stressful since he adopted Rachel. There was no end in sight, especially not now.
Minerva took the seat next to him. "After this, only one year left with the Weasley twins. I swear I have aged a decade since they were Sorted into my House."
"They're in your NEWT class as well, I believe," he said.
"They are. I took a leaf out of your book and threatened to remove them from the class entirely if they messed around. So far they've been behaving themselves, in class at least," Minerva said, her gaze going to the Gryffindor table where the Weasley twins were currently loudly chattering with the rest of their Quidditch team.
Severus looked around the Great Hall once more and nodded to himself as he saw Rachel enter with her study group. He'd been watching her closely this past week and was satisfied that she was at least appearing in the Great Halls for meals and eating something each time.
"How is she?" Minerva asked.
"I don't know," Severus answered honestly. He had spoken with her briefly after class, but otherwise he'd only seen her from a distance since Sunday. Since she would miss her session with Torey because she wanted to take the train home with her friends, Severus had already rescheduled her appointment for Monday. He wasn't sure what else to do.
"It's hard, at that age," she said. "They desperately want their independence, but there are some things they simply can't do for themselves yet. Give her some time. She might be more willing to speak with you about it once the stress from being at school is gone."
He nodded. He had noticed that Rachel was a fair bit calmer and more talkative when they were at home, rather than when they were at Hogwarts.
"I'm sure I'll be seeing more of you this summer as well. I'm going to take two weeks and go visit my brother and secure the wards on his home," Minerva said.
"Set up a passphrase," Severus said, turning his attention to Minerva. "Something you can include in letters or when you speak with him by firecall. Make it innocuous. If the passphrase is missing, then something is wrong."
Minerva met his gaze for a long moment, seeming to search for something, and then she finally nodded. "Best to have the precautions in place, so that everyone can get used to them," she agreed.
"Albus has prepared you?" Severus asked. He knew that Minerva's role in the Order had to be minimal, since they needed her to be able to take the place of Headmistress should something happen to Albus, but she would be briefed regularly.
"He has. I'll assist however I can," Minerva said. "Albus has spoken to you today?"
"He did," Severus said. The Order of the Phoenix was now officially reestablished. Albus had recalled the old members, those who had survived the first war at least, and was now covertly recruiting. They had people in place watching the Ministry, tracking the news, watching for sightings of Death Eaters, and in general gathering whatever information they could find. Severus was not unaware that they could really use a spy in the Death Eater ranks right now, but he could not find it in him to mind that it couldn't be him.
Severus' tasks in the Order were two-fold. His first priority was taking care of Rachel and keeping her safe. He didn't need Albus to tell him to do that, but he had been relieved to hear that Albus considered Rachel's safety to be a top priority of the entire Order. They could not afford another lapse - Rachel would not survive another encounter with the Dark Lord. Severus' second task was to work with the children of Death Eaters - to guide them if he could, to spy on them if he could not. Albus had also informed Severus that he would be brewing for the Order and in charge of stocking the Order's infirmary with Poppy's assistance. Headquarters for the Order had not yet been established but were apparently in the works.
Albus entered the Great Hall from the rear door and stepped forward into his place, his gaze moving around the room.
Severus already knew what Albus was going to do, they had discussed it yesterday evening and Albus had decided it was necessary. Severus was torn. The students needed to know, they needed to be aware, but this was most certainly inviting trouble for him and trouble for Rachel. The Daily Prophet had not been kind in its summation of the third task and what had followed.
"If I may have your attention," Albus called, and the Great Hall began to quiet, the students turning and looking up at him. "I would like to thank all of you for this year. We have seen friendships forged, alliances made, and some truly spectacular feats of magic and bravery. I would like to ask you to be brave one last time this evening."
Severus turned to watch his Slytherins. He was certain all of them had heard the rumors by now, but it was another thing entirely to hear it confirmed by the Headmaster. There were a few students in particular who he was curious as to how they'd respond.
"On the evening of June 24th, the night of the third task, Lord Voldemort reclaimed his body and summoned approximately thirty Death Eaters to his side," Albus said, pausing.
Gasps and whispers broke out across the room. Severus noticed that Draco didn't seem surprised or moved, though he looked at Rachel. Pansy looked worried and she also looked in Rachel's direction. The Carrow twins leaned in to speak with each other, while Alice held her head high. Jacob and Avery glanced at each other for just a moment, before both of them feigned indifference.
"The Ministry of Magic and some of your parents would prefer that I not tell you this. You are, after all, very young. Many of them do not believe that Lord Voldemort has returned. I wish you to know the truth, because it is only with the truth that we can prepare ourselves for what is to come. Everyone in this room is welcome at Hogwarts. Everyone. It is only with trust and unity that we are strong in the face of those who seek to divide and conquer. Remember the friendships that you have built," Albus said, nodding once before sitting down. The feast appeared while the room was still silent.
Severus served himself food while keeping an eye on the Slytherin table. Millie had leaned in to talk with Rachel, Rachel's frown clear from across the room. Further down the table, Michael Pike was chatting with Scarlett, the new Slytherin Quidditch team Beater, but he seemed mostly unconcerned. Perhaps his father had left him unaware of his activities. With the first years Malcolm Baddock was very still, staring at his plate while people chattered around him. Severus decided it wasn't too late to have a talk with the boy before the train left tomorrow - it was his last chance to intervene before summer.
"And now we wait," Minerva said quietly.
He inclined his head. Waiting was the hard part.
Early on Saturday morning Rachel dragged her trunk into Severus' quarters.
"You're having breakfast in the Great Hall?" Severus asked, from where he was sitting at the dining table with a copy of the Daily Prophet and a plate of toast and eggs.
"Yes. We're heading out early to say goodbye to Viktor and Fleur," Rachel said. "You're okay to pick me up from King's Cross?"
"I'll be there, but I want you to stay with one of your friends until you see me," Severus said. "There's wrapped sandwiches on the table for you to take with you, and some fruit."
"Thanks, I'll grab it in a moment," Rachel said, bending back down to grab her trunk again.
"Why don't you levitate that?" he suggested.
Rachel stood up. "I guess I never really thought about it, I suppose that would be easier." She got out her wand and said the Levitation charm, her trunk rising easily into the air next to her. She carefully made her way to her room, trying not to bump anything with it, and managed to set it down at the end of her bed.
"Remind me to teach you the Shrinking and Enlarging charms to use on packages that have items inside that you don't want to shrink," Severus said when she came back out.
"That would be good, thanks," she said, stopping by the table to load sandwiches and fruit into her bag. It was nice that Severus requested enough for all of her friends. "I'll see you at King's Cross in a few hours."
"You will. Send your Patronus to me if anything seems off," he called as she went back through the wall.
"I will!" Rachel called back. She didn't particularly blame him for being overprotective at the moment - the third task had only happened a week ago - but it would get old quickly.
"All set?" Theo asked once she'd closed the door to Severus' office behind her.
"Yep, I've got sandwiches for everyone too," Rachel said. "Let's be quick in the Great Hall, I don't want to miss Viktor and Fleur."
"We won't, they're not going to leave without saying goodbye," Millie said.
The Great Hall wasn't crowded yet, they were at the very early end of breakfast and she knew that many people - Pansy and Daphne in particular - were still packing. Rachel served herself some eggs and bacon and a half glass of pumpkin juice, Millie busily buttering toast next to her while Theo reached for one of the school copies of the Daily Prophet.
"Damn them," he said, putting it back down.
"I don't want to know," Rachel said, focusing on her bacon. She had seen the first couple of articles, the ones that labeled her a liar, a confused child, and manipulated mental case. After that she'd stopped reading. She didn't care what the Daily Prophet said as long as she didn't have to read it.
Theo shook his head. "We need to do something."
"There's nothing to do," Rachel said. "If they won't believe Professor Dumbledore they certainly won't believe me. I even offered to take Veritaserum. They have a copy of my memory. There's nothing we can do."
"They tried to get you to take Veritaserum? Isn't that illegal?" Millie said around a mouthful of toast.
"I offered," Rachel said again. "Professor Snape said no."
"Good," Theo said. "You should never offer to take Veritaserum without a binding agreement for a limited scope of questioning."
"It's not like I know anything for them to find out," Rachel said. "It was more important that they believed me. And I wasn't really thinking clearly at the time."
Theo glanced around them before leaning in. "You know about the attempt on the Philosopher's Stone, about that awful diary of the Dark Lord's, and they could have asked you if Professor Snape helped you prepare for the tasks. Everyone has secrets," he said softly.
That was a good point, she knew more than she realized. "Still, wouldn't they have had to know about those things in order to ask me about them?" she asked.
"Not if they ask you a broad question like 'what do you know about the Dark Lord' or 'when have you spoken with the Dark Lord'," Theo said, his voice still hushed.
"Besides, I don't think they would have believed you even if you'd taken Veritaserum," Millie said, reaching for her juice. "But really, don't give them the opportunity. Especially not now."
Rachel nodded, her appetite suddenly gone. She had more secrets than even her friends knew. Could someone ask something like 'what don't you want people to know about you?' with Veritaserum? It seemed like a question to ask Severus. Much later.
"Rachel?"
Rachel turned and found Cedric and his friends. "Hi Cedric. Hi Heidi, Martin, and Roland."
"First I want to say that the Daily Prophet is a horrible newspaper with a complete lack of journalistic value. It's clear now more than ever that it's a puppet of Minister Fudge's corrupt government," Roland said, interrupting Cedric.
Rachel smiled. She thought that was the nicest thing she'd heard in days. "Thank you."
"Second, we believe you, and we believe Professor Dumbledore. I've been speaking with some people in my House, and while there are a range of opinions, I believe I have persuaded some people to at least keep an open mind and look for more information instead of blindly believing the Ministry," Roland continued.
"We've been talking with our House too," Heidi said with a wane smile.
"We have, and I think the people who can be convinced are coming around to the idea," Cedric said.
"Thank you," Rachel said again, both grateful and surprised. Cedric was a good person to have around.
"We were going to go out and say goodbye to Viktor and Fleur, would you like to come?" Cedric asked.
"I would," Rachel said, checking her watch and standing up. "We should have enough time to say goodbye and still meet the carriages."
"Let's go," Millie said, carrying the last of her toast with her.
Hermione, Neville, Ginny, and Luna met them all as they made their way out of the Great Hall.
"Cedric, I've been meaning to ask you something," Hermione said.
"What's that?" Cedric asked.
"Did your study group use guides for your OWL preparation? If so, did you compare guides and pick one, or is there a set of guides that is generally considered the best?" Hermione asked.
Cedric smiled. "I'll let you speak to Roland about that, he's the one who picked our guides."
"We did do some comparisons and there are really only two series of guides that are even worth considering," Roland said, falling back to speak with Hermione.
Ginny grinned at Rachel and Rachel couldn't help but smile back.
They found the Beauxbatons students and the Durmstrang students out on the front lawn, the Beauxbatons students gathered around the carriage, while Madame Maxime was standing further away speaking with Hagrid.
Fleur and her sister broke away to meet them.
"I guess this is goodbye for now," Cedric said. "Do you think you'll ever come back to Britain?"
"I would like to, I think. I have met many interesting people here," Fleur said. She clasped Cedric's hand and he leaned down to allow her to lightly kiss his cheeks. "It was good to compete with you. You are very skilled."
"As are you," Cedric said, with a light blush to his face.
"Thank you for saving me," Gabrielle said.
"Ah, that was Rachel," Cedric said, but he leaned much further down to allow Gabrielle to kiss his cheeks as well.
"You will always have my gratitude for that," Fleur told Rachel. "You were very much a surprise to me, but you did well."
"Thank you, I'm glad we got to know each other," Rachel said, letting Fleur hug her, and was a little surprised when she kissed her cheeks as well.
"You saved me too, thank you," Gabrielle said.
It was Rachel's turn to flush. "I was glad to help. I hope we see each other again," she said, accepting Gabrielle's hug and leaning down when prompted for her cheeks to be kissed again.
"We enjoyed training with you," Theo said.
"I did as well," Fleur said, turning and watching as Viktor and Predrag approached.
"This is goodbye then," Viktor said, nodding to them. "We enjoyed our time at Hogwarts, and with you."
"We were glad to have you here," Cedric said with a smile. They shook hands.
"It was nice to compete with you. You did your school proud," Fleur said with a smile. She had to tug on Viktor's shoulder to get him to lean down to allow her to kiss his cheeks.
"You as well," Viktor said.
"Thank you for flying with us, and for training me," Rachel said. "I'm glad we got to know each other a little bit."
"Me too," Viktor said, shaking her hand. "All of you. It was good to train with you."
"Have a safe trip home," Millie said.
"And write to us if you feel like it," Hermione added. "We'd love to keep in touch."
Viktor nodded to Hermione before leaving with Predrag. Fleur guided her sister away back to where the Beauxbatons students were now boarding the carriage.
"I guess that is that then," Cedric said. "I'm sad to see them go, but I'm a little bit glad the tournament is over with."
"Me too," Rachel said, though she was more than a little glad it was done with. "We'll see you around the castle next year."
"We will, if you have OWL questions, just let us know," Cedric said.
"We will," Hermione said, nodding eagerly.
Theo shook his head, but he was smiling. "Thanks, Cedric."
They made their way back up to the path, boarded the carriages in small groups, and a little while later they were settled into their compartment.
"Someone should start a list for the trolley," Millie said as they all got settled in with their animal carriers on the floor of the compartment.
"I've got parchment," Rachel said, digging in her bag. "Does anyone else feel like we're forgetting something?"
"What?" Neville asked with a slightly panicked expression. "I've got Trevor."
"I think it's just been a long year," Hermione said. "It's a little weird to be going home right now in the middle of all of this."
"It does feel unfinished," Luna agreed.
Rachel nodded, deciding that must be it. Besides, if she had forgotten something in the castle she was just going straight back there in a few hours. She could check her dorm then, just to be sure.
"What are everyone's plans for the summer?" Ginny asked, accepting the piece of parchment and quill that was being handed around.
"I'm not sure yet. My parents will probably want to go on holiday somewhere for a week or two," Hermione said. "Of course we'll be able to stay in contact with our new two-way books, so that won't be a problem. And Roland gave me a good run down of the guides available. I'll take a look in Flourish and Blotts as soon as possible and let you know which ones we'll be using."
"That will be good," Theo said. "My plan is to live in my father's library and with a pile of OWL guides I can probably get him to leave me alone for the most part. I'm going to try and visit with Draco and Pansy, I've already made plans with Draco. We're going to try to go to a league game together."
Rachel nodded sympathetically. She could only hope that Theo's father actually would believe that Theo was making 'appropriate' friendships while at Hogwarts.
"I'll be in the greenhouses at my Gran's and staying out of her way. Ginny, are you planning on having a birthday party this summer?" Neville asked.
"I'm planning on it. I'll check with my mom and let you all know. Charlie is coming for a visit in August for a week," Ginny said, shaking her hair loose over her shoulders. "Otherwise I don't have plans. What about you, Luna?"
"My father is back, but I'm not sure where his research currently is at. We might be traveling, I'm not sure yet," Luna said.
"I don't think my family has any plans either. Isobelle is going to be insufferable about coming to Hogwarts next year," Millie said. "At least she's old enough now that she doesn't need to be watched. Any plans, Rachel?"
"Not that I know of. Professor Snape is going to be meeting with people a lot, I think. I'm going to try to see Sirius and Remus too," Rachel said. She hoped that was still an option even now that everything had happened. Severus might not want her going beyond the wards at all.
"That reminds me," Theo said. "We should keep working on the animagus meditations this summer. Maybe we'll be ready for the last one by the time we come back in September."
Rachel nodded. With everything that had been going on she'd completely put aside the meditation practice.
"And," he continued. "Most importantly. We should all take a break."
"Hear, hear," Ginny said with a wry smile. "I'm going to sleep in until ten."
"Living dangerously, I see," Luna said.
"I think just sitting out in the greenhouses will be enough of a break for me," Neville said.
Rachel nodded. She had a couple of things she wanted to do this summer. She needed to develop the rolls of film that she'd taken, she wanted to fly, she needed to do summer homework, she suspected that Severus would be teaching her some new spells and potions, and she wanted to see Sirius and Remus. Other than that, she just wanted some rest.
"Well, hopefully we'll have a quiet summer," Millie said.
"I hope so too," Rachel agreed, thinking of all of the ways she wanted it to stay quiet.
Thank you so much for all of your wonderful comments. I appreciate you making this journey with me, Rachel, and Severus. Year five, As Pure of the Driven Snow, will start next Saturday. I recommend following me if you'd like to receive an email notification for when it's posted. Thanks again!