It was five in the afternoon when they apparated into the Granger's back yard. Severus let Rachel hold onto his arm as she was clearly attempting to steady herself without it being obvious in front of the Grangers.

"No matter how many times I see it. It's incredible," Robert Granger said, shaking his head. "Hermione said she'd be learning to do that this year."

"Yes, the Ministry offers lessons in apparition for sixth and seventh years," Severus said, glancing at Rachel, who was now standing on her own. "Thank you for inviting us for dinner." He wasn't entirely certain there was going to be a dinner, depending on how well this conversation went.

"No, sir. Thank you for coming. We really appreciate it. I really appreciate it," Hermione said.

"Yes, we do. Hermione said you may be able to answer some questions more holistically. Won't you please come in," Jean Granger said. "Rachel, welcome, it's been almost a year since I've seen you."

"Thank you," Rachel said, hesitating before speaking again. "I'm always glad for a chance to see Hermione, she's a wonderful friend."

"She speaks of you often, always with fondness," Jean said. "Why don't you girls settle down with a movie and we'll let you know when dinner is ready."

"Is that alright, Professor Snape? Or is it better if we're there?" Hermione asked.

"If your parents would prefer to first speak with me alone, then that would likely be for the best," he said, recognizing that they wanted to hear about the war from him.

"I think that would be best," Robert said.

They followed the Grangers into their home and Rachel hurried to the sofa, her steps a little wobbly. Hermione sat down next to her.

"I'll just be in the other room," Severus told Rachel.

"We'll be fine," Rachel promised, but both she and Hermione looked worried.

Severus nodded, noticing that the Grangers had watched that interplay closely, and then he followed them into their kitchen.

"Wine or beer? I'm assuming we're all going to want a drink for this?" Robert asked.

"Wine, please," Severus said, though he had no intention of doing more than sipping at it.

Once each of them had a drink, they sat down at the kitchen table, the Grangers on one side and Severus on the other.

"Did you have specific questions or are you more looking for an overview of the current situation?" Severus asked. He wasn't sure how much Hermione had told them, but Rachel had indicated that Hermione had been forced to explain a number of things to her parents this summer.

"We have questions, mostly, I think. Mostly we're looking for someone's opinion who might be a little more reasoned. Hermione is very intelligent, but she's still a teenager and she sometimes tends to believe that problems are bigger than they actually are," Jean began.

Severus kept his expression neutral. If they had thought Hermione was exaggerating, then they were in for a shock.

"This person she calls You-Know-Who. Do people actually call him that?" Robert asked.

"Yes, usually, though the term the Dark Lord is also frequently used, and sometimes He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. His name is considered taboo in our society," Severus said.

"And he is literally waging war on your…society?" Jean asked.

"Yes, war has been declared between the Dark Lord and the Ministry of Magic. The Dark Lord and his Death Eaters operate on an agenda of control and elimination of those with less than pure blood, that is, a person who does not have magical blood from four grandparents, and ideally, magical blood much further in their ancestry than that."

"And they're after people like our Hermione?" Robert asked.

"Yes, and you as well. Muggleborns, such as your daughter, and their families were targeted heavily in the first war. We expect to see similar attacks within the year, possibly much sooner," Severus said, watching them closely.

"It's the equivalent of racism then? Except instead of class and skin color, it's magical blood," Robert said.

"I am not overly familiar with muggle history regarding race, but yes, the reasoning and propaganda is that muggleborns are unfamiliar with our culture and try to change it and try to bring in unfamiliar ideas. A good portion of purebloods are not at all familiar with muggles. For most of them, and for a number of half-bloods, the concept of electricity or many of your machines is completely foreign. Many purebloods believe that muggleborns represent a danger of muggles at large discovering our society and leading to the persecution of witches and wizards," he explained.

"How much of your society feels this way?" Jean asked, her hand tight around her wine glass.

"It varies. The Dark Lord and the Death Eaters are willing to kill to gain support for their views. Most people are not, but there are those who are willing to stand by and let it happen. And even some well intentioned purebloods still hold certain prejudices."

Robert set down his glass. "Let's cut to the chase. How much danger is Hermione in? How much danger are we in?"

"At Hogwarts, Hermione is quite safe. Hogwarts has state of the art wards that were not broken in the last war, nor in the global wizarding war. I know from my daughter's experiences that she and Hermione stick together with their friend group in the hallways and after classes, so she should not be in danger from any other students. Everyone in her friend group knows the Patronus charm, so they can send a message to the nearest staff member in an emergency. In the case of a Death Eater attack on the school, we have pre-planned evacuation routes to get the students to safety," Severus said, knowing full well that Hermione wished to return to Hogwarts.

"And here, at home? How would they know where we live?" Jean asked.

"Unfortunately that will be easy enough information for the Death Eaters to come by. I doubt that you are high up on the Dark Lord's list of targets, but at some point there will be regular attacks on muggleborns and their families. The two options that we are recommending are warding, which should give you a chance to alert us that you are being attacked and for us to send help, or temporary relocation to another country." He would not understate the risks.

There was silence as they stared at him. "Are you serious?" Robert finally asked.

"Very. A large number of muggleborns and their families were killed during the last war. We are doing our best to warn people and to give them the options that would best protect them so that there is not similar bloodshed this time. Some people have already chosen to relocate and we've provided wards to many more," Severus said, watching as their expressions changed from worried to fearful.

"Keeping Hermione from Hogwarts isn't going to change this, is it?" Jean asked after a moment.

"No, it's not. Her name and blood status are already known. At this stage, my recommendation is wards for your home. We have a ward expert who would be happy to come by and set them up. He's actually the eldest brother of one of Hermione's other friends. I also recommend that you allow Hermione to continue at Hogwarts. She will be safe there and she will be able to continue the training she needs to defend herself if necessary. These decisions are, of course, up to you."

Jean and Robert looked at each other before looking back to Severus. "What will the wards do? Will we be able to feel them?"

"No, you won't feel anything. We will set them up so only certain magical people can cross them, but muggles will not notice a difference. They will audibly sound if someone attempts to bring them down. They will also send an alert, so that we can send you help," Severus explained.

"You keep saying 'we'. Do you mean the staff at Hogwarts?" Robert asked.

"No, I am a member of an organization devoted to standing against the Death Eaters. Our primary goal is to protect people, both in added security and in responding to attacks." The Grangers didn't need to know about the true goals of the Order. That would just complicate matters.

There was quiet again as they absorbed this information.

"These are the same people who killed Rachel's birth parents, is that right?" Jean asked.

"Yes, the Dark Lord killed Rachel's parents almost fifteen years ago in an incident that forced the Dark Lord out of his body when he attempted to kill Rachel. He was restored to a body just over a year ago," Severus explained, hoping that didn't sound nonsensical to a muggle.

"And she was recently kidnapped and tortured by these people?" Jean pressed.

"Yes she was. She was outside of the wards at the time, at one of the Hogsmeade weekends. She and her friends, including Hermione, will be escorted by me if they choose to return to Hogsmeade," he explained. He didn't bother to tell them that they could revoke their permission for her to go to Hogsmeade because by the time the first Hogsmeade weekend of the school year came about, Hermione would have reached her majority and her parents' permission would be a moot point.

"And she's alright now?" Robert asked.

"She is recovering. She has mostly recovered from the physical effects," he said, unwilling to go into details.

Jean shook her head. "No one would be alright after that. I don't know how we're supposed to make this decision. It seems like our hands are tied. I want to protect Hermione and I want what is best for her, but it seems like there's not a lot we can do."

"The warding is something you can do to protect both yourselves and Hermione. But you are correct that there is no way to simply move Hermione away from the magical world. There are other magical schools in other countries, should your family wish to relocate."

"Our life is here," Robert said. "If the warding will help, then I think we'll want to consider that. And if Hermione is safer at Hogwarts than she is here, then that's something to think about too."

A chime sounded and they all startled.

"The oven, that's the chicken," Jean said, standing up. "You've given us a lot to think about."

"I understand. If you'd like, I can collect Rachel and let you speak with Hermione," Severus offered.

"Nonsense, we invited you to dinner," Robert said. "We appreciate you being straightforward with us. Even if we are muggles. And here I just thought we were regular people."

Severus nodded his understanding. He'd done what he could, the rest the Granger family would have to decide for themselves. "Thank you for your hospitality."


Rachel watched Severus leave the room with Mrs. and Mr. Granger and then looked at Hermione. "How is that going?" she asked quietly.

Hermione sighed. "Not as well as I'd hoped."

"Are they going to try to stop you from coming back to Hogwarts?" she asked, since that was the worst case scenario that she could think of, barring Death Eater attack.

"They wanted to, but I explained that at this point it really isn't going to make a difference. The Death Eaters know who I am. I tried to say that Hogwarts was the safest place for me, but that kind of fell flat after I told them about Quirrell and Umbridge, and well, everything else," Hermione said, looking at Rachel with a worried expression. "I told them about you being abducted in June, and about what happened after the Triwizard Tournament. I was worried that if I didn't, Professor Snape might mention it. I didn't tell them about the article in the Daily Prophet though."

Rachel nodded, understanding immediately which article she meant. "Thank you. And I think you were right to tell them, like you said, because Severus might bring it up in explaining that Hogwarts is safe and they're making sure that doesn't happen again."

Hermione frowned. "It makes me wonder a bit how safe Hogwarts is really going to be this year. Do you know anything about the new Defense professor?"

"No, Severus still hasn't said anything. I don't even know their name."

"As much as I hate to say this, I think we need to be prepared. We have more precautions in place now, but I think we need to stick to them. If they try to keep you after class and you aren't immediately released, we'll contact Professor Snape. And of course we're going to stay with you in the hallways. I think the public revelation that the Dark Lord is back might embolden some of the students who are supportive of him. Obviously the new Defense teacher will be suspect, but who do you think among the student body are the most likely threats?" Hermione asked, her expression shifting from worried lips pressed tight to the one she wore when she was studying.

"The Carrow twins are probably our most immediate threats. Anyone who joined the Inquisitorial Squad for real is probably also up there," Rachel said. "Severus said he was going to ward our dorm so that only the sixth year girls and Astoria can come in."

"That's a good start. I assume the three of you are being careful in the common room?"

"We are, and we'll have Tracey and Tristram on our side as well." She exhaled. She hadn't really thought a lot about the practical parts of returning to Hogwarts beyond being able to walk and fly. "I think we're going to need to keep an eye out for Draco. He made a lot of enemies when he rescued me."

Hermione hesitated. "Is Draco going to want us to keep an eye out for him? I mean, obviously we'll help if we see him being attacked, but I'm not sure Draco is going to want to spend time with us."

"I don't think it will take long for him to realize we're his allies. Though I will make it clear to him that we won't tolerate open blood prejudice. I'm not going to let him say things about you or about Ginny's family," she assured Hermione.

"I know. And maybe what Draco really needs is some time with a mixed group of people. That way he can see for himself that muggleborns are just like anyone else. He seemed to do okay with the DA, I didn't hear any complaints about him." Hermione nodded to herself.

"I didn't either. I think he knows that whatever he thinks privately, he at least needs to be polite," she said. Then again, polite wasn't a word she would use to describe Draco in most situations. "If not polite, then at least not openly prejudiced."

"How did Professor Snape react to learning about the DA?"

Rachel grimaced. "I haven't told him yet."

"I know it's hard to tell your parents you've been keeping something from them, I know exactly how hard it is, believe me. But if we're going to run the DA this year, I think you need to tell him," she said.

"I know. I just…Severus has been acting like I'm broken. And I wanted things to return to normal before I told him. Did your parents…were they okay when you told them? Did they get mad at you?" She felt her forehead furrowing with worry.

"They were disappointed. I told them that I was worried they'd stop me from going to Hogwarts if I told them these things, and my mom said it might have been better if they had stopped me from going to Hogwarts. Which really just proves my point. But later my dad came and talked to me and said that what they really wanted was for me to be safe, happy, and healthy, and that it was hard for them to keep me safe if I didn't tell them what was going on. I had to promise to tell them about things that were important or could put me in danger," Hermione explained.

Rachel nodded. That didn't sound too bad. "What are you going to do if they say you can't go to Hogwarts?"

"Remind them that seventeen years old is the age of majority in the magical world and that if I want to return to school after my birthday they can't actually stop me. I don't want to do that, but I am going back to Hogwarts. The magical world is my future and I need a proper education. They won't be happy with me, but I don't think it will be a situation like with Millie's dad. They'll still want me to come home and see them." Hermione pressed her lips together, her expression less confident than her words.

While she definitely wanted Hermione to come back to Hogwarts, she really hoped it didn't come to that.

"What do you think Professor Snape is telling them?" Hermione asked.

"I don't know. I suppose it depends on what questions they have. He'll probably emphasize that your family is in danger and that wards are important. Sirius and Remus told me the Order has been speaking with a lot of muggleborns, trying to warn them and prepare them. Cedric and his friends took Martin and his family to the continent."

"I don't think I can convince my parents to leave Britain. Even after telling them everything, I don't think they understood how dangerous it is right now."

"I think it's hard to imagine it until you're really there," Rachel said.

They sat quietly for a long moment. Rachel found herself thinking about the war and about how impossible of a task the Order had. Around ten percent of the magical population was muggleborn, which was close to three thousand people. Then add their muggle family members, and that was a lot of people when there was a limited number of Order members and aurors. And the Death Eaters weren't even attacking muggleborns right now, so far as she knew. An attack could come from anywhere at any time. The problem was much bigger if the Death Eaters decided to target random muggles.

"Every time people talk about the first war, I think it really couldn't have been that bad. But it was, wasn't it? It was worse than we can imagine." Hermione finally said.

"I think so." If things kept going the way they were, they weren't going to need to imagine it. They were going to see it happen first hand.


Rachel knelt down on the floor in her room in front of her trunk. They were returning to Hogwarts on Sunday, which meant she needed to deal with this soon. She'd been putting it off all summer. At first she simply hadn't been well enough to do it, but then it had been denial that she was going back when she didn't feel ready yet.

She didn't feel ready yet.

She could walk now, even though she was a little wobbly and occasionally needed to grab onto something or take a break. Flying was going a little better, though Severus still wouldn't allow her more than six feet off the ground.

She wasn't sure what the problem was. She should want to go back to school.

Pushing open her trunk lid, she began to take things out. One pile was for things that were coming with her back to Hogwarts. One pile was things that needed to be put away here. And one pile was of things she needed to get rid of.

They had already owl ordered everything she needed from Diagon Alley. She suspected she wouldn't be going back into Diagon Alley herself until the war was over. On her desk sat her new textbooks, three sheaves of parchment, a potions kit refill that still needed to be integrated into her potions kit, her new journal, her planner, and her completed homework assignments. She added her rune dictionary to the stack of books that she'd be taking back to Hogwarts, since she'd definitely need that again. Her two-way book from last year joined the others on her bottom shelf. Double stacking the smaller books gave her a little more room, but she really was going to need a new bookshelf soon.

She set her cauldron and her potions kit aside and began pulling out old textbooks. Most of them went on her bottom shelf, but her old Defense textbook and the OWL guides went into the back of her wardrobe, beside the Lockhart books. Eventually she was going to get rid of those. Her mom's jewelry box went on her desk. Her camera was already in her school bag, along with her invisibility cloak, the Marauders Map, and her spy scope. Hopefully she wouldn't need any of the latter three this year. She had already refilled her money pouch from the small bag of galleons that contained her Triwizard Tournament winnings.

Clothes went onto her bed to be sorted, except for her winter cloak, hat, gloves, and boots, which went to the side to be put back into her trunk. She used her wand to repair a few pairs of threadbare socks. The summer dresses Severus had given her were now hung in her wardrobe. She was back in trousers and t-shirts now that her wounds were healed.

She found a few stray chocolate frogs at the bottom of her trunk and stared at them for a bit. This was a childish aversion. The chocolate frogs had never done anything to her. She knew she still liked chocolate. Finally she put them aside in the pile to repack. She'd deal with them later.

Then came the piles of parchment from old notes and homework assignments. She found the bundle of Defense assignments that she'd intended to ask for an impartial grader for. Considering she'd received an O on her grade report in Defense, they clearly hadn't been going by Umbridge's grades. She supposed Professor Dumbledore had intervened. Or maybe Professor Podmore. She dropped that pile on the floor and vanished it. It was completely useless. She kept a few essays from other classes for later reference, though she doubted she'd need them, and then vanished the rest of her returned homework and her notes. Everything important was already in her two-way book.

At her request, Severus had bought her a carrying case for her cassettes. That was on her bedside table along with her Walkman. She had two new rolls of film for her camera, and two filled rolls in their tubes that she still needed to develop. She also had more photo paper. Severus had told her he'd help her with brewing once they were back at Hogwarts. Her stuffed bunnies were on her bed. She was of two minds about bringing them back to Hogwarts with her. She wanted them, but sixteen really was a bit old to be sleeping with a stuffed animal, wasn't it? Maybe she'd ask Torey what she thought.

After going through her potions kit and vanishing anything that had deteriorated beyond usability, she refilled it from the ingredients she'd ordered. There were a few more things in there than usual, which wasn't a surprise since Severus had told her to specify a NEWT level potions refill in her order. She was looking forward to potions class at least, and still beyond relieved that she'd actually gotten in.

She moved up to her bed and began sorting through clothes. Pretty much everything was coming back with her. She knew her robes needed to be lengthened and standing and holding one of her uniform skirts against her waist told her those needed to be lengthened too. Examining the pair of trousers she was wearing, she decided those could probably use another inch at the ankle as well.

She folded her t-shirts, uniform blouses, underclothes, and jumpers to go back into her trunk and then got up to go into the bathroom.

Her appearance in the mirror seemed almost foreign, but she wasn't sure why. She was a little pale, she supposed, and her glasses were slightly different from the frames she'd worn last year. The ends of her hair needed trimming. Her face had lost a little bit of the roundness that was associated with childhood.

Rachel took a step closer. She was still small, but she'd definitely grown a bit over the past year. She didn't look sixteen, and she simultaneously felt like she was too young and way too old. She felt worn thin. It was hard to say what was wrong. Maybe everyone felt like this while they grew up? Maybe everyone felt like a stranger in their own skin.

She raised her forearms up, trying to gauge how noticeable her scars were to people who might walk near her. Not very, she decided, unless someone was looking directly at them. It didn't matter that much. She'd keep her arms covered unless she was showering or changing. Carefully she ran her index finger along one of the scars on her left arm and then pressed hard. It didn't hurt anymore. It just felt like a line in her skin.

She supposed she was healed. She wasn't in pain. She could stand. She could walk. Her hands still shook, but they weren't as bad as they used to be. If they weren't better by now, she'd probably be using a charmed quill for the rest of her life.

Looking at her, she didn't think anyone would know that she'd been bed bound and completely unable to move eight weeks ago. Then again, everyone did know.

She hadn't really dealt with the fallout of that in the last week of school. Hell, she'd barely been conscious the last week of school. Hopefully the summer would have been enough time for everyone to forget. Or, if not forget, for them to have more important things on their minds.

With one last glance in the mirror, her own hazel eyes looking accusingly back at her, Rachel grabbed her towel and her comb, went back into the bedroom and gathered up the pile of clothes she needed Severus to lengthen, and started downstairs with her arms full.

Severus was in his armchair, his head bent over a potions journal. She was glad to see that. Severus had been so focused on taking care of her this summer, it had seemed like hadn't had time for the things he liked to do.

He looked up as she sat down on the sofa. "I presume those need to be altered?"

"Yes, please. And my hair needs to be trimmed, but it doesn't have to be right now if you're busy," she said.

"If you can give me ten minutes to finish this article, I'll alter your clothes and we can deal with your hair in the kitchen," he said.

"That's fine." She set the comb and the towel on the low table and the clothes in a pile next to her. After a second thought, she picked the comb back up and began to carefully untangle her hair. The trimming would go faster if Severus could actually get the comb through it on the first pass.

She enjoyed the quiet. These last ten days of August were her last chance at quiet and alone time before she was thrust back into the noisy hubbub that was a fully occupied Hogwarts. It hardly felt like it had been summer at all, though she supposed she'd slept through a lot of it. She'd had so many plans for this summer. There had been so many things she'd wanted to do.

She needed to reprioritize. Who knew how long she had left. She needed to decide what was important to her and focus on that. Spending time with Severus. Spending time with her friends. Her school work. Being able to fly again. Preparing people in the DA. She wanted to take more pictures. She wanted to finish her work on the Dreamless Sleep potion. She wanted to become an animagus alongside her friends.

There were two years left behind the safety of the castle wards. She thought she could accomplish all of that in that time.

Severus tossed the potions journal down onto the table with a small grunt and a shake of his head.

"Bad article?" she asked.

"Just lamenting the current state of potion invention. There is a lot of focus on reviving techniques and potions from the past, based on writings from hundreds of years ago. Some of those brews are no longer possible because the plants used in them have gone extinct. Some of the brews described are exaggerations or fancies. Many of them we have better alternatives for now. We need to move forward. There is nothing wrong with taking inspiration and lessons from the past, but we shouldn't confine ourselves there either," he said, his mouth twisting.

"Does just anyone get to publish things in the journals?" she asked.

"Most journal articles are published by potions masters or mistresses. Usually people will publish something at the end of their mastery as well. In Britain the guilds oversee the journals for their trades, in some other places the journals are run independently. Why don't you try on your robes so I can see how far to lengthen them," he directed.

Rachel pulled on one set of robes and moved so that she was standing in front of Severus. "I think I'm finished growing."

He looked up at her. "Perhaps. For girls it generally depends on the age of the onset of puberty. Given how small you were at thirteen, it's possible you still have another year to grow."

She hoped so. She wouldn't mind another inch. She thought it was too much to hope for two more inches.

Severus had her try on each set of robes as he lengthened them, but let her simply hold her skirts against her.

"And the trousers I'm wearing," she said once he'd done the rest of her clothes.

He pointed his wand at her ankles and the end of her trousers moved down so that it was resting against the top of her feet. "Is there anything you need that we haven't ordered? You have enough clothes? Your boots and school shoes still fit?"

"I'll try them on, but I think so. Hair trimming now or later?" she asked.

"Go try on your shoes while I get the scissors," he said as he stood.

Rachel gathered her clothes to take them back upstairs, having to stop and steady herself against the railing halfway up. She managed to get all the way to her room before she had to sit back down again. She folded her clothes while she was sitting and then tried on her shoes. Her boots were a bit tight in the toes, but they'd do for another year.

She sat on the floor for a moment, her feet in her winter boots, and tried to tell if the weird feeling was coming from her or from the Dark Lord. If it was from the Dark Lord, she had no idea what was going on with him. She couldn't identify an emotion or an urge that went with it. If it was from her, it was just her feeling a little weird. That happened sometimes.

"Rachel?"

She jolted, uncertain how long she'd been sitting there thinking about nothing. She pulled off her boots and prepared herself to go back downstairs. She was just fine.


"Can we speak about something?" Severus asked on Thursday night.

Rachel looked up from her new Defense textbook in alarm. "I'm not ready to talk about what happened," she said as firmly as she dared.

"That is not what I was referring to. Is Torey helpful to you? Are you discussing things there?"

"Yes," she lied. Torey had said Rachel could wait until she was ready to talk about things, but she wasn't sure Severus would understand that.

"Good," he said with a slight nod. "Let me know if that ceases to be the case."

"Torey is helpful. I think I'm going to tell her about my visions, if that's okay?" She'd been trying to work up to that for a while now.

"Yes, that's fine. There's no need to keep that a secret from Torey, since the Dark Lord clearly knows about the visions. You may also wish to discuss the prophecy with her, so she has a better understanding of why the Dark Lord is focused on you."

She considered that. She supposed the visions and everything else did make more sense when knowing why the Dark Lord was after her.

"I would like to ask you about something I heard about at the end of the school year. A number of people implied that you had taught them the Patronus charm, including most of my prefects," Severus said, pausing and waiting for her rather than asking a direct question.

"Well. I mean. I didn't teach most of them personally," she hedged. "I was teaching Pansy and Daphne personally, because I wanted Pansy to be able to send you a message this summer if she needed to."

"If you did not teach them personally, then how did this come about?" he asked.

Well she had been meaning to tell him and she was rapidly running out of time before the school year began. "My friends and I ran a secret defense club last year." There, that wasn't so bad. She peered at Severus, trying to gauge his reaction.

His expression seemed neutral, but it was clear that he was thinking.

"We assessed the risks, we knew how dangerous this was, we really did, but we felt we were doing something that was necessary. We were very careful. And we're positive that the only person outside the club who knew about it was Professor Dumbledore," she explained, trying to forestall his objections.

"You told Albus?" he asked. The question 'but not me?' was clearly hanging in the air.

"We didn't tell anyone, but when Professor Dumbledore said that I would know how many students could cast the Patronus charm, it was pretty obvious he knew. We think the portraits told him, but we're still not sure how he knew our curriculum. If I had told anyone, it would have been you," she assured him.

"What was the reason that you didn't tell me?"

She looked away. "Because I thought you would tell me I couldn't do it. And I felt that the club was really important." She thought she was supposed to apologize, but she still couldn't say that she felt she was wrong to do as she had.

Severus was quiet for a long moment. "I would have asked you to discuss it with me in detail, and once you had explained how important this was, I likely would have assisted you and taken extra measures to help protect you."

"Really?" She stared at him. "But…I mean, it was dangerous. We could have gotten all of us expelled."

"All the more reason for you to have extra protection that a staff member could provide. I have no desire to see my students killed in the war and it's very likely you and your classmates will finish Hogwarts just in time to be thrust into the worst of it. Defense education is vital and I am well aware that what Umbridge was teaching you was not Defense," he said.

She sat and tried to process that. Severus would have helped them. Even though it was dangerous. She'd been keeping secrets from him all year and she hadn't needed to. "I'm sorry. I should have trusted you."

Severus nodded once. "Trust is difficult. And I am not unaware that you are a teenager and teenagers tend to keep things from their parents. What I will say is that what you were doing with the Inquisitorial Squad was very dangerous."

"How did you know about that?" she asked.

"Draco told me, when I questioned why he was volunteering to help you when he had joined the Inquisitorial Squad to act against you."

"Oh. Well. You're right, it was very dangerous, and I was never comfortable with it. We asked Tristram, Tracey, Cassius, and Draco to act as our spies, since they were all in the DA."

"The DA?"

"The Defense Association. That's what we called our club. And we made it very clear to them that they could stop at any point and that if they were in danger that they should concentrate on saving themselves. Each of them considered it carefully before agreeing to do it. But, the idea was, that if Umbridge was directing them to look for student meetings, we could disband or change when we held a meeting. As far as any of us know, she never had any idea about the DA, or about the spies in the Inquisitorial Squad. We were trying to do our best to protect everyone," she said in a rush, trying to cover everything.

"I'm sure you were. Do you see that it would have been better if you'd had my help? For all of it?" he asked.

"Yes. We're planning to hold the DA again this year, though hopefully not in secret this time," she said. "But if it is in secret, we'll tell you."

"I don't think it will be necessary for it to be a secret, but you'll need a staff sponsor," he said.

"We know. We were going to ask Professor Podmore, but I suppose we'll need to give the new Defense professor a chance to get settled before we ask them. Unless you want to do it?"

"I will do it if the Defense professor says no, but give her a week or two to adjust before you ask her," Severus said.

"Her? Do you know who it is?" she asked.

"Professor Maureen Nash is taking a sabbatical from her teaching position at a school in America to teach Defense at Hogwarts for the year. I'm afraid that's all I know about her."

Rachel considered this. "If she's from America, that probably means she's not going to be allied with the Ministry, or really even would have an opinion about the war. She probably hasn't even heard of me." That would be nice. Most of the professors treated her as they would any other student, but many of the Defense professors had been focused on her in different ways.

"That's likely true. We'll have to see how this goes, but she's an experienced teacher, which is an unexpected boon." Severus nodded again. "I'm going to presume that the students who performed well on their Defense OWLs were members of your club?"

"Well, I don't really know how everyone did on their OWLs, but we really only taught practical magic. People had to study on their own for the written portion," she said with a shrug.

"I know you taught the Patronus charm, what else?" he asked.

"Mostly combat. Dodging, shielding, stunning, disarming, running, target practice, spells to interrupt the flow of attack, and then a few high powered spells that we warned everyone not to use outside of an emergency. We also taught a bit of Healing, first aid, conjuring bandages, that sort of thing."

"Good. Those sound like useful skills. You said you have a curriculum?"

"Yes, though we're probably going to revise it before we start the club again. We also need to recruit, we lost almost half our club when the seventh years left," she said.

"If Professor Nash is willing, perhaps have her recommend it to her upper year Defense students. Also, I'd be happy to look over your curriculum if you want suggestions or additional ideas," he offered.

"Yes, thank you. That would be helpful, especially in case we're missing something obvious. Our goal was never really to prepare people for exams. We wanted them to be prepared in case they were attacked."

"I will keep that in mind when you show me the curriculum. Obviously there are a number of spells I won't recommend being taught to students, especially not in a club environment, but I may have suggestions for survival and escape."

She nodded quickly. "And that's really what we want. Fight back long enough to get to safety. I think…that's what most people are going to need, isn't it?"

"Yes. Only a handful of people are going to want to truly fight in the war, and they will get training from other sources. Defense and escape should be your focus," he agreed.

Rachel exhaled. That hadn't gone as badly as she'd feared at all. "I'm sorry I kept it from you. I tried not to lie to you about it."

"You did a good job at keeping it a secret, at least. I did not suspect you of lying to me or of keeping a secret like this. I suppose that should be concerning to me, but keeping a secret like that is a skill and one you may need in the future." His mouth twisted slightly.

"I'm pretty good at keeping secrets when I need to."

"I know. I will say, however, you generally don't need to keep them from me. I wish to support and help you. I also understand you wish for some privacy, which is natural. Everyone needs privacy. But if it is something that is endangering you or others, I ask that you tell me," he said, his tone carefully patient.

"I will. I'll try. Sometimes I don't realize how dangerous something is until later." She shivered. She had to be more careful this year. For once, she wasn't even going to object to going everywhere with her friends. She felt safer surrounded by them anyway.

"I understand. Threat assessment can be difficult."

She nodded again and got to her feet with her book. "I'm going to have an early night. Goodnight."

"Goodnight," he said, his expression flickering from neutral to concerned.

She went upstairs to her bedroom and sat down on her bed. That hadn't gone so bad, but then why was her heart pounding?

Closing her eyes, she focused on breathing fully and slowly, just like Torey had taught her. The conversation hadn't gone poorly, Severus wasn't mad at her, everything was okay.

Then why did things feel not okay?

She shook her head. It was like her body sometimes panicked without her mind. Her mind knew things were okay, but her body didn't seem to. She patted her bed until she found her stuffed bunny and then held onto it, stroking its fabric fur. She really was okay. She just had to believe that.


"What do you want for dinner tonight?" Severus asked when Rachel wandered into the sitting room on Friday afternoon.

"What?" she asked, pulling her headphones off of her ears.

"What do you want to eat tonight?" he tried again.

She made a face. "I don't know. What do you feel like?"

"There's leftover beef stew. There's cottage pie," he suggested.

"Stew, I guess." She moved to put her headphones back on.

He could hear the music from where was sitting. "Turn that down a bit, there's no healing for reversing some kinds of hearing loss," he told her.

Before she could respond a silvery wolf Patronus charged into the sitting room. "Severus, we need you at Headquarters urgently. Albus is seriously injured."

Severus pushed himself to his feet. "Stay here, I'll be back as soon as I can. Send your Patronus if you need me."

"Okay," she said, looking frightened.

He briefly considered bringing her, but he decided she would be safer here. He apparated to the hidden step outside the entrance to Grimmauld Place and let him inside. "Where are you?" he called.

"Cellar! Hurry!" someone shouted back.

Severus ran down the hall and then down the steps of the cellar, his wand in hand. A group of people was crowded around one of the beds. "Make way, let me see," he said.

Albus was on the bed, shuddering and jerking. There was no blood, no obvious injuries.

A quick diagnostic charm showed that Albus had been cursed and the problem seemed to originate with his right hand. Carefully Severus pulled back the sleeve to reveal Albus' right hand. It was black and the blackness was spreading up his arm. There was an unfamiliar ring on his middle finger and another spell revealed that as the cursed object.

"We need to get that ring off of him but no one can touch it. No one can touch him. We need dragonhide gloves or something of similar protective power and a protected receptacle to drop a cursed object in," he directed, moving his wand as he tried to slow the spread of the curse.

"On it," Black called, breaking away from the group.

"Let me through." Poppy's voice came from the other side of the cellar.

"It's a curse, Poppy. We need to monitor his vitals. We need to stop it from getting to his heart or brain, and we need to get this damn ring off of him," Severus said without looking up.

"Get me a Reconstitution draught from the cabinet," Poppy instructed, her wand already out as she worked.

Severus continued to try to work to block the tendrils of the curse from creeping up and into Albus' body. Draco appeared by Poppy's side holding a potion bottle. Poppy checked the potion and then spelled it into Albus' stomach.

"Gloves. Protected receptacle," Black said when he returned.

"I'll remove it," Lupin said, reaching for the gloves.

"Work swiftly, but do not exchange speed for carelessness," Severus instructed.

Lupin nodded with a jerk of his head and then knelt down next to Albus and began to carefully thread the ring off Albus' finger with gloved hands. The ring dropped into the metal box that Black had provided with a clank.

"Close it, ward it, and put it somewhere safe," Severus said, pulling the curse back to Albus' hand. He didn't recognize the curse but he could tell that it was meant to be deadly and he could tell that Albus had cast some protection to keep it from spreading before he had lost consciousness.

He kept working, trying to draw the curse out, but found that he couldn't. Without the countercurse, this was going to kill Albus. "I'm going to have to sacrifice his hand."

"There are no other options?" Poppy asked.

Severus shook his head. Even containing the curse in his hand, Albus had maybe two years to live if they didn't find something to stop the curse. Carefully he began tying the tendrils of the curse off, making a block around Albus' wrist. The hand would be mostly useless to him, but it at least wouldn't pain him. He was vaguely aware of time passing as he worked, but he finally finished blocking it as tightly as he could.

"His vitals are stabilizing. What curse is this?" Poppy asked.

"I don't know. I've never seen it before," Severus said. He wondered if Albus could get the curse damage specialist to come back to Britain.

"He'll live?" Black asked.

Severus nodded, not wishing to specify how long Albus would live. That was a conversation he needed to have with Albus first.

"Does anyone have any idea what this was about? How he got into this position?" Lupin asked.

"He told me he was pursuing leads. How that came to this, I do not know," Severus said. Perhaps Albus had been sent the ring as a gift and he hadn't checked it before putting it on. That was unlikely. Albus should have been able to sense the curse before he even picked up the ring. Perhaps there had been a compulsion charm placed on the ring.

"He's going to wake up again?" Draco asked, his expression that of carefully hidden fear.

"He will wake, he needs to rest first. I can stay with him," Poppy said.

"Any idea how long before he wakes?" Severus asked. He needed to have an unpleasant conversation with Albus about the future and that couldn't be put off.

"Since he had a reconstitution draught an hour ago, probably in another two or three hours, but I would wait to speak with him until tomorrow or the next day regardless," she said.

He nodded. It could wait that long. "I need to return to Rachel, unless I'm needed here."

"There's nothing else you can do. Thank you for your swift work, Severus," Poppy said. She obviously knew both that the curse had been killing him and that it still would.

"Draco, a moment, if you would," Severus said, catching Draco's eye before moving toward the cellar stairs.

Draco's footsteps followed after a moment.

Severus went into the sitting room, since that was the nearest available room. "Are you prepared to return to Hogwarts in a week's time?"

"Yes. I owl ordered everything. Remus said it wasn't safe for me to go to Diagon Alley right now. Do you think it's that unsafe?" Draco asked.

"For you, and for Rachel, yes. The chances of abduction are too high and I have no doubt the Death Eaters have been watching Diagon Alley. Not all of the Dark Lord's followers are Marked, and many will act as informants to get in his good graces," Severus said. "I also want you to give some thought as to whether or not you will be attending Hogsmeade weekends. As you are now emancipated, the decision is yours. I recommend that if you wish to go, that you accompany myself and Rachel."

Draco leaned against the back of the sofa. "The Dark Lord really wants to kill me that badly?"

"Yes. Your parents may have managed to sway him to keep you alive. But if you are captured you will most likely be tortured, confined, and subjected to the Imperius curse, or killed outright." He knew he was being harsh, but Draco had to understand how much danger he was in.

Draco's throat bobbed as he swallowed. "Because I betrayed them."

"They see it that way. There is no shame in betraying someone who is acting to harm you or those you care about. You did what you believed to be necessary and you saved Rachel's life."

"I did what I needed to do. I just thought that they wouldn't care that much, I guess. They didn't care that much about Theo. I mean, his father did. But the Dark Lord didn't really care," Draco said.

"Theo did not act directly against the Dark Lord. You prevented something the Dark Lord wanted very much, right in front of him. The Dark Lord will not forget," he emphasized. "You may encounter difficulties with a few students at school who are loyal to the Death Eaters. Be prepared to defend yourself. Try not to be alone in the corridors. Tell me if they are threatening or attacking you."

"That's why Rachel is always surrounded by her friends, isn't it? It's not just that they're weirdly co-dependent. They're protecting her. It's harder to attack someone when you get five wands drawn at you."

"Precisely. You would do well to cultivate allies you are safe with. I know Rachel will defend you if she is in a position to do so." He wasn't certain who would be a good group of allies for Draco. Draco wasn't close friends with any of his yearmates as far as he was aware, beyond Rachel and Pansy.

"I think it's more likely she's going to be attacked than I am, if we're both in the same place," he said.

"That's probably true. Try to be aware of your surroundings. Anyone who was an Inquisitorial Squad member in truth would probably be a good person to be cautious around," Severus said.

Draco nodded.

"Is there anything you need before I go?" he asked.

"No. I have everything I need," Draco said, though his expression was pensive.

"Send your Patronus if you need me. Or a letter, if it's not urgent." He waited until Draco nodded again before he let himself out of Headquarters and apparated back into the sitting room.

Rachel jumped up from the sofa. "Is Professor Dumbledore alright? How badly was he hurt? Was it a Death Eater attack? Was it the Dark Lord? Will he be okay?"

Severus held up his hand to stop her deluge of questions. "Albus will be alright. He was cursed by a cursed object. We do not know the origin of the object or what happened. Right now Albus is resting and I will speak with him in more detail tomorrow or the next day."

Rachel pressed her lips together. "Is it because the Dark Lord couldn't get to Professor Dumbledore, so he sent a cursed object?"

"We don't know yet. Hopefully the curse did not interfere with his memory and he will be able to tell us how he received the object. Until then, we will have to wait," he said, summoning as much patience as he had.

"But he's okay? He's just resting?" she asked.

"For now," he said, answering both questions and hoping she didn't press.

She hesitated, but finally nodded. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, I just need to sit down and rest for a little bit." Dealing with the curse had been draining. Any magic use that was sustained for more than ten or fifteen minutes tended to take a lot of energy. He'd been working for nearly an hour.

"I'll get the stew prepared, you rest," she told him, hurrying away into the kitchen.

Severus let her. He needed a minute alone to prepare himself for what was to come.