"Rachel! Wake up!"

Rachel opened her eyes, her heart racing, and struck out at the dark shape near her. It jumped back with a yelp. Hogwarts, she was at Hogwarts. This was her bed and she was at Hogwarts.

"Millie?" she asked as her eyes adjusted. She could make out Pansy and Daphne holding up their lit wands now.

"Yes, it's me," Millie said, moving closer again.

"Did I hurt you?" Rachel asked, immediately feeling guilty that she'd tried to hit Millie.

"No, you didn't even get me," Millie said. "You were crying out in your sleep. I thought I'd better wake you."

Rachel put on her glasses. "I'm sorry, I must have woken you all up."

"It's alright," Daphne said. "Are you okay?"

Rachel nodded and then realized they probably couldn't quite see her. "Yes, I'm fine now."

"Can't Professor Snape give you more Dreamless sleep? I've seen you taking it," Pansy said.

"I can only have it twice a week. I can try to sleep with my curtains closed though, that should block out the sound," Rachel said, embarrassed that she'd woken everyone. She wasn't sure she could manage sleeping with her curtains closed, but she could try at least until her nightmares stopped again. It had been nearly a week since the Quidditch game where the Dementors had shown up, so she probably had about four or five weeks until the nightmares stopped again.

"Did you want to talk about anything?" Daphne offered.

"No, it's fine. It's just aftereffects from the Dementors," Rachel said quickly. She picked up her wand from her bedside table. "Lumos. I'm going to go sit out in the common room for a bit and let you get back to sleep. Sorry."

"Why do the Dementors affect you so badly?" Pansy asked.

"Some people are just more vulnerable to them," Millie answered for Rachel.

"Goodnight. Sorry," Rachel said again as she left her dorm. She was about to shut the door behind her when Millie grabbed it. "You don't have to come. You can go back to bed."

"Well, I'm awake now, might as well," Millie said, looking down as Midnight slipped out between their feet.

Rachel didn't want to argue with Millie so she simply led the way into the common room and sat down on the couch closest to the fireplace. Midnight immediately jumped up and climbed onto Rachel's lap.

Millie sat down next to Rachel. "Are you okay? I didn't want to ask in front of Pansy and Daphne."

"I'm okay. Just nightmares. I didn't realize I was making sounds during them," Rachel said, gently stroking Midnight.

"I've heard you crying in your sleep a few times this year, but not like this," Millie said. "I don't usually wake you, my mom said you're not supposed to wake someone up while they're dreaming, but it seemed like you were in pain."

Rachel was glad the fire was low enough that Millie couldn't see her blushing. "It's just nightmares," she said again.

"There's really nothing else Professor Snape can do besides the Dreamless sleep twice a week?" Millie asked.

"I think if he knew of something else he would tell me about it," Rachel said.

"He knows that you're having nightmares then? And he thinks that they're because of the Dementors?" Millie asked.

"He knows. He didn't say it was because of the Dementors, but this happened after the Dementor on the train too, so I'm pretty sure it's because of them," Rachel explained. "You really don't have to sit up with me. I'm okay."

"I want to, Rachel. I'm your friend," Millie said. "Besides, you have my cat. Are you sure Professor Snape won't let you get a cat?"

"He really doesn't want to have a pet. He won't even have his own owl, we borrow one of the school owls over the summer," Rachel said. She wondered if she could find Gladys and take a treat to her if she went up to the owlery.

"It's good that Professor Snape adopted you. I think he'd be pretty lonely if he hadn't," Millie said.

"I don't think whether or not he was lonely was a consideration," Rachel said. Severus seemed to value having time alone. Otherwise he'd have a wife, wouldn't he?

"I'm sure it wasn't, but I still think it's a good thing," Millie said. "Oh, I've been meaning to talk to you and the rest of the group about something, but there's always something going on."

"About what?" Rachel asked, glad for a distraction.

"I think Professor Lupin is a werewolf," Millie said, sounding concerned. "I know we didn't have to hand in the werewolf essay Professor Snape assigned us, but I did the research and a lot of things add up."

Rachel smiled. "Yeah, I think he is too. I think that's why Professor Snape told me he was dangerous but wouldn't say why. And I think that's why he taught that lesson too - he wanted people to realize it without him having to outright tell someone."

"Should we tell someone?" Millie asked. "I mean, he's a werewolf and this is a school."

"Tell who? If Professor Snape already knows then so does Professor Dumbledore and the rest of the staff. They must have made it safe somehow. Maybe Professor Lupin goes away when it's the full moon and that's why Professor Snape taught the class," Rachel said. "Though I think we can tell the rest of the study group."

Millie started giggling. "What if on the next full moon, Professor Snape teaches the lesson on werewolves again, because he thinks no one figured it out?"

Rachel couldn't help but grin. "And we all kept acting like we didn't know why he was teaching it."

"He'd be looking at you the whole time, just waiting for you to figure it out," Millie said, still laughing.

"And I could play completely innocent, like yes, we all know about werewolves," Rachel said, starting to laugh.

"We could get the whole study group in on it and always correctly answer the questions on werewolves and then bring up the next topic in the lecture for him," Millie suggested.

"And then he'd be teaching us lessons in Potions on how to apply what we learn in the classroom to real life, because he thinks none of us can do it," Rachel said. She felt a rush of gratitude for Millie. She had needed a friend right now.

"Do you think we should tell Professor Lupin we know?" Millie asked, once they'd stopped giggling.

Rachel thought it over and shook her head. "If it was me, I'd like to go on believing that no one knew. It's probably something he's embarrassed about. I mean, the full moon was his boggart."

Millie nodded. "That makes sense. I think Professor Lupin's nice and he's a good teacher. I just wouldn't want to meet him on the full moon."

"Me neither," Rachel said. Werewolves were the last thing she needed right now.


Rachel found herself distracted in Defense class. Professor Lupin was lecturing on Hinkypunks today and had one of the creatures in a terrarium on his desk.

The Hinkypunk was wispy and insubstantial, like smoke that had gathered all in one place. It carried a lantern, which it could apparently shoot fireballs out of, and it made odd little grunting noises. The Hinkypunk would lure unsuspecting travelers off their path and then attack them.

Rachel decided she felt a little bit like she was on a path and she didn't know what were the Hinkypunks with the lanterns and what was the real way forward. Was Sirius Black the real threat she should be worried about, or should she be worried about another encounter with the Dementors? Should she be worried about what she told Severus last week or could she trust him?

She looked over at where Millie was taking diligent notes and decided she'd ask to borrow them later, or look at them when Millie transcribed them into their two-way books. Her focus in class hadn't been great this week, though she was still managing to get things done. She just felt tired and uneasy. She supposed that the nightmares she was having would leave anyone feeling that way.

"For homework, I'd like twelve inches on Hinkypunks. Please read the appropriate chapter in your textbooks before you write the essay. Due next Friday," Professor Lupin said, dropping a piece of fabric over the terrarium. "Class dismissed."

Rachel copied down the homework assignment into her planner and shook her head to clear it. She had to get over this nightmare stuff so she could pay attention in class.

"Rachel, could I see you for a moment?" Professor Lupin asked.

"I'll see you in the Great Hall for lunch," Rachel told her friends as she finished putting her things in her bag.

"See you there," Millie said, meeting Rachel's eyes for a moment.

Rachel nodded to show that she was alright meeting with Professor Lupin alone, even if he was a werewolf.

When they were alone Professor Lupin sat down on one of the desks across from Rachel. "I haven't had a chance to speak with you since the Quidditch match. How are you doing?"

"I'm fine," Rachel said. "I was very lucky that Cedric was close enough to catch me."

"Yes, that was very fortunate. Cedric is a good flyer, not many people could have pulled that off," Professor Lupin agreed. "How are you doing after being exposed to so many Dementors at once?"

Rachel fought to keep her expression neutral. "I was unconscious for a while, but I'm fine now. Professor Snape has agreed to teach me the Patronus charm."

"That is, in fact, was what I was going to suggest," Professor Lupin said. "It's a difficult charm, there are many witches and wizards who never master it. However, it would be ideal if you were able to protect yourself from the effects of the Dementors. I trust Professor Dumbledore when he says that he is doing what he can to keep the school safe, but it always makes sense to have a backup plan."

"Yes, sir," Rachel agreed. After two encounters with the Dementors she felt that she did need a backup plan.

"Is it alright if I walk you down to lunch, since your friends have gone ahead?" Professor Lupin asked.

"That's fine," Rachel agreed, wondering if Professor Lupin knew that Severus had recommended that she try not to be alone in the corridors.

"Good. Is there anything you want to talk to me about before we go?" he asked, his gaze watchful.

Rachel shook her head. "I really am okay." Which was mostly true. Mostly.

"Alright, but if there is anything, please feel free to ask me. James would have wanted you to be able to come to me if you needed something," Professor Lupin said.

"Thank you," Rachel said. They had made it to the staircase before she realized there was something she wanted to know. "Did James always want to have children?"

"I don't think he gave it much thought when he was younger, but yes, after he and Lily got married he often mentioned how they wanted a family. He wanted to have two children, a boy and a girl, but I believe he would have been happy with whatever children he had," Professor Lupin said. "Before he matured a bit, I would have thought he would have been the last one of us to ever marry and have children, but he did manage to sort himself out."

Rachel considered this carefully. It was a relief to know that her father had wanted children, but it was a little different to imagine herself having a younger sibling. She'd never thought about that before. Both Daphne and Millie had younger sisters.

"You were very much loved and wanted, Rachel. I know both James and Lily would be proud of you," Professor Lupin said gently.

"Thanks," Rachel said. And somehow that helped, at least a little bit.


"Did Severus come talk to you this week?" Rachel asked once Torey had shut the door to her office.

"No, he didn't. Why do you ask?" Torey asked as she settled into her chair.

Rachel was a little bit surprised by that, she had expected that Severus would have gone to see Torey. Maybe he hadn't because it was old stuff and he wasn't as worried about it.

"Rachel? Was there something that you thought he should have told me about?" Torey prompted after a moment.

"No," Rachel said and tried to figure out what she was going to do. She had wanted to ask Torey a question, but she'd assumed Torey would have already known the background part.

"Was there something you wanted to talk to me about?" Torey asked when Rachel didn't elaborate.

"Kind of. Just there's parts I don't want to talk about. But I can't ask you about the other part, if you don't know about the first part," Rachel explained, hoping her meaning was getting across.

"This is something you talked with Severus about?" Torey asked.

"Yes, but only because he asked me something, and I explained it to him," Rachel said. "Maybe I shouldn't have told him. I don't know."

"Do you want to tell me the parts that you can, and maybe we can figure out some of the answers?"

Rachel fidgeted. She really didn't want to do this again. "If I write it down for you, can I tear it up after you've read it?"

"Sure," Torey said. She turned around and got a pen and a piece of paper from her desk and put them on the coffee table for Rachel.

Rachel knelt down on the floor and quickly began to write. She summarized what she'd told Severus, including the answers to the questions he'd asked so that Torey wouldn't have to ask them. She pushed the piece of paper across the table to Torey and sat back down on the couch and waited.

Torey read the paper quickly, frowning briefly before she went back to a more neutral expression. "I can understand why this would be hard for you to talk about."

Rachel shrugged and held her hand out for the piece of paper, which Torey handed to her. "Do you have something I can put this in after I tear it up?"

Torey handed her the small bin from beside her desk and Rachel carefully shredded the piece of paper until no one could read it.

"Severus asked you about this?" Torey asked when Rachel was done.

Rachel sighed. She hadn't thought to write that part down. "So I played a Quidditch match last Saturday and Dementors showed up at the match. I passed out and fell off my broom, but I was okay because Cedric caught me - he's the Seeker for the Hufflepuffs. And then I was unconscious in the hospital wing for a while, but when I woke up I was confused because it was dark and I thought I was back at the hotel, and Severus had to tell me I was at Hogwarts. So that's what he asked me about," she explained.

"That's a lot to have happen," Torey said.

Rachel shrugged again. "But it's not really the point. The point is I'm having nightmares again, just like I did last time I was exposed to the Dementors. Severus has been giving me some Dreamless sleep but I can only take it twice a week."

Torey nodded. "It wouldn't be wise to take it more frequently than that, unfortunately. You said that you had nightmares the last time you were exposed to the Dementors? That was on the train when you went back to Hogwarts, correct?"

"Yes," Rachel said, waiting to see if Torey was upset with her for not telling her about it back then.

"Have you noticed any differences between the quality of your nightmares? Are these nightmares you've had before you were exposed to the Dementors?" Torey asked.

Rachel thought about it. "The nightmares have gotten clearer and more real. They started to get better after a few weeks, they weren't as hard to wake up from. Now they're worse again. I actually woke up my roommates because I was crying out in my sleep."

"Are the nightmares from the Dementors all about what you wrote down?"

Rachel nodded. "I guess the nightmares aren't really the point either. I mean, I don't like them, but I don't know what else I can do about them."

"There are a few things we could try, but it sounds like you have something else you want to talk about," Torey said.

"There are things other than Dreamless sleep for helping with nightmares?" Rachel asked.

"There are, though they're not as immediate or as straightforward as Dreamless sleep. There's a method from what's called DBT, or Dialectical Behavior Therapy, that is useful for dealing with nightmares that are repeating," Torey explained. "I can tell you about it and you can decide if it's something you want to try."

"Okay," Rachel said, not sure what to do with the realization that Severus had been right in that she should have talked to Torey about her nightmares sooner.

"Do you want to talk about that right now, or about what you were about to tell me?"

"The other thing," Rachel said. "When I told Severus about this, he told me that my relatives had been receiving money to care for me. I didn't really believe him and asked him to check with Professor Dumbledore, which he did. My relatives were receiving a hundred Galleons a month while I lived with them, but converted into muggle money."

"Okay," Torey said.

Rachel bit her lower lip as she tried to sort out what she was feeling. "It really bothers me. All while I was growing up they said what a burden I was on them, and how I was taking food and money that should have gone to my cousin Dudley. And, where Uncle Vernon was taking me, he said it was because they needed the money, because children are expensive."

"What your uncle did to you had nothing to do with money," Torey said gently.

"Then why would he do that?" Rachel asked. Her voice felt like it was caught in her throat and her chest hurt just thinking about this.

"Because he wanted power over you. He could prove to you and to himself that he could do whatever he wanted to you, and you couldn't stop him," Torey said. "You've said before that when Hagrid brought you your Hogwarts letter that your uncle said that they'd tried to beat the magic out of you. Your uncle was afraid of you and your magic, and this was another way that he tried to prove that he was more powerful than you and your magic."

"They never should have agreed to take me in if they were that afraid of magic," Rachel said. "I wish they hadn't."

"I wish they hadn't too. They were abysmal guardians to you and they deeply hurt you. They didn't have the right to do that and they shouldn't have done it. No one should be treated that way," Torey said.

Rachel realized she'd been chewing on her lip and stopped herself. "Can we talk about the nightmare stuff now? Does it really work?"

"Sure," Torey said. "And I've had positive results with it from my other clients, though none who had been exposed to Dementors directly prior to their nightmares. But we can still try this, and if it doesn't work after trying for a few weeks, we can try something else."

Rachel nodded. That was better than nothing. "Okay."


"Are you certain you're ready to fly again?" Severus asked.

Rachel glanced at where the rest of the team was gathered around Marcus. "Yes, I'm fine. I flew at practice on Wednesday," she said as she adjusted her left arm guard so that it wasn't pressing against her wrist.

"That's not the same as a game, you only fell a week ago," Severus insisted.

Stopping herself from sighing, but only just barely, Rachel looked Severus in the eyes. "I can do this. I'm a good Seeker. There won't be any cursed Bludgers or Dementors. The weather is clear and we've got good visibility," she said, though at Severus' frown she realized she probably shouldn't have brought up the cursed Bludger incident.

"If you're certain," Severus said, his reluctance obvious.

"I am," she said, glancing at the team again. "Can I go?"

"Yes," Severus said, though he walked over with her to the team.

"Are we good to go, sir?" Marcus asked, eyeing Rachel.

"Yes. Do your best," Severus said, nodding at Marcus.

"We will, sir," Adrian said.

"I believe you're due on the pitch," Severus said, meeting Rachel's gaze again and then leaving them.

"You know what to do. Let's go," Marcus said.

They went out onto the pitch as a team and found the Hufflepuff team already assembled.

Cedric smiled at Rachel and gave her a short wave. Rachel waved back.

"Don't go falling in love just because he saved your life," Imogen said.

Rachel turned to look at Imogen. "I'm not falling in love. Cedric is just nice. And he did save my life."

Imogen grinned. "Just try not to think of that when you're about to catch the Snitch. You're faster than him, use your speed to stay ahead."

"I will," Rachel said. There was no way Cedric would expect her to throw the game just because he'd saved her life, right?

"I want a clean game," Madam Hooch said, mostly looking at the Slytherins. "On three. One, two, three!"

Rachel shot up into the air as soon as Madam Hooch blew her whistle. It was a nice day. They'd only had a few frosts and no real snow yet. It was still quite chilly though. Rachel would take being chilled any day over the storm they'd flown in last time.

The Chasers and the Beaters were all busy with the Quaffle and the Bludgers.

Rachel left them alone and flew a bit higher, wanting a better view of the pitch. Cedric was flying a little lower but in a fairly predictable search pattern. It was all a matter of who saw the Snitch first and how close the other Seeker was when it happened.

The commentator, who Rachel had learned was a friend of the Weasley twins, was busy describing the back and forth of the Quaffle. Slytherins were leading 30-10.

It took another five circles around the pitch before Rachel finally spotted the Snitch. Cedric was on the same side of the pitch as she was and about equidistant from the Snitch. Not wanting to alert him, Rachel gently turned her broom, keeping her eye on the Snitch, and made for it.

A glance behind her told her that Cedric hadn't been fooled and Rachel leaned forward and put in as much speed as she could as went for the Snitch. The Snitch darted away and Rachel followed, though unfortunately the Snitch had gone in Cedric's direction. It wasn't long before Cedric and Rachel were flying side-by-side, both pushing their brooms as fast as they could go.

It was as much luck as anything else when the Snitch flew back in Rachel's direction. She leaned forward and grabbed it out of the air, immediately holding it up high so that people would know the Snitch had been caught. The cheering from the stands was matched by booing from some of the other Houses.

"Sorry!" she called to Cedric.

Cedric shook his head. "It's fine, that happens. It could just as easily come my way. That's how it works."

Rachel smiled at him. Cedric really was as nice as everyone said he was. "Thanks!"

"We'll play again next year and we'll see who gets the Snitch then," Cedric said before flying away.

Rachel flew down to join her teammates.

"190-20, Slytherin!" Imogen yelled, putting her fist in the air.

"We just have to decimate Gryffindor in January and we'll be in line for the Cup," Adrian said cheerfully.

"Good flying," Marcus said, clapping his hand on Rachel's shoulder.

"Well it's a lot easier when there's no Dementors around," Rachel said. She was ready to go shower and get warm again.

"We've been talking about that," Imogen said as she joined them. "We have a plan."

"A plan?" Rachel asked as they left the pitch.

"Yeah, a 'save Rachel if the Dementors show up' plan," Imogen said. "Adrian named it."

"Do I even want to know?" Rachel asked.

"Probably not," Marcus said.

Rachel decided she'd leave it at that.


Severus finished adding the crushed bicorn horn to the cauldron and turned the heat to high, carefully timing it so that he could turn the heat back down after twenty seconds. This was the second batch of Polyjuice potion he'd brewed over the past week, along with a few other potions that he thought he might need.

He didn't have a plan just yet, but he was making various preparations for steps that he might take. He hadn't brewed many of these since the war, though others he kept in stock just in case they were necessary. He always had a vial of Veritaserum prepared along with a few others that had proved useful over the years.

Severus left the Polyjuice potion on low heat, he'd come finish it in twenty four hours, and went to change his robes. He was expecting Rachel soon and after they had dinner he was going to begin to teach her the Patronus charm. He wasn't sure if it was at all reasonable to expect a thirteen year old to cast the Patronus charm, but it was the best protection he could think of to keep her safe from the Dementors.

He found Rachel waiting for him in the main room when he came out dressed in casual robes that he wouldn't wear out into the castle. "Congratulations on catching the Snitch," he told her.

"Thanks. That one was mostly luck. You don't think I should have let Cedric catch it, do you?" she asked.

"No, did he imply as much?" he asked, a little surprised. He wouldn't have expected that from Diggory.

"No, not at all. He was very nice about it," Rachel said as she took a seat at the table. "I felt kind of like I maybe should have let him catch it because he saved me last time."

Severus shook his head. "You did fine. I'm certain Cedric expected you to play your best, as did your teammates. Are you ready for dinner?"

"Yes," Rachel said.

Severus went to the fireplace and floo-called the kitchen to request that two dinners be sent to his quarters. He then joined Rachel at the table. Plates appeared before them with pork chops, mashed potatoes, and stewed carrots. "Do you want to wait until we're finished eating to discuss the Patronus charm, or would you like to start now?" he asked as he cut into his pork chop.

"We can start now," Rachel said. "Unless you want me to take notes."

"Note taking isn't necessary," he said. "The Patronus charm is an ancient spell, there are no records of when it was first invented, though there are scrolls showing its use dating back more than a millennia. It is a difficult spell - the theory is taught in NEWT level charms courses, though the students aren't expected to be able to perform the spell. Most charms are fairly straightforward. You say the spell correctly, you perform the wand movement correctly, and the charm does what it is supposed to do. The Patronus charm hinges on the caster being able to maintain concentration on a happy memory."

"I have to think of a happy memory?" Rachel asked.

This had been the part that Severus was worried about. Rachel had clearly not had many powerfully happy memories in her short life, if any at all. "That's correct. There is also the option of imagining what would be a very powerful happy moment, however that can be fraught with difficulty because often there is another emotion accompanying that imagining, such as desire or loss or impatience. The important part is to have the memory of pure happiness and joy."

Rachel nodded, though she looked worried.

"While experiencing that happiness, draw your wand in circles and then say the incantation, expecto patronum, which roughly translates to 'I confidently expect a savior'. Following the incantation, either an insubstantial white mist should appear, which would be an non-corporeal Patronus, or a silvery animal will appear, which is a corporeal Patronus. The corporeal Patronus is the more difficult of the two and is more easily achieved after you've had practice with a non-corporeal Patronus," Severus explained. "It's likely it will take you at least several hours of practice before you can create a non-corporeal Patronus, if you can create one at all."

"So I suppose the first step is finding a happy memory," Rachel said.

"Yes, I'd like you to concentrate on that first. Maybe spend some time thinking about different memories that might work and imagining them as clearly as you can so that you can access them when you need to. I'd suggest looking for maybe two or three memories and practice remembering them. Next week we can try the incantation and see if any of those memories will work," Severus said.

"Okay, I'll see what I can figure out. Maybe something when I was spending time with my friends?" Rachel suggested.

"That's a possibility we can try," Severus agreed, though he doubted whether memories of working with her study group were going to be strong enough.

"I'll work on it," Rachel said before stuffing her mouth with mashed potatoes.

"Good," Severus said. He was out of other ideas for the time being.


"Happy birthday," Rachel said as she set down the pan of apple strudel.

"Thanks," Theo said, smiling at her.

"Butterbeers, pass them down," Ginny said as she pulled bottles of butterbeer out of her bag. They had just visited the kitchen to get the things they needed to celebrate Theo's birthday.

"I'm not sure how I'm going to get the candles to stay up in this," Hermione said as she examined the strudel. "The crust is rather thick, but maybe I can melt the bottoms of the candles and stick them on?"

"Or use a Sticking charm," Neville suggested.

"Luna, do you have Theo's present with you?" Millie asked.

"In my bag," Luna said, bending down out of sight to dig in her bag.

"Is a Sticking charm safe to use on food?" Hermione asked.

"I don't see why not, we can just use finite incantatem and they should come right off," Theo said.

"Do you want to blow out candles first or open your present first?" Luna asked, holding up a gift that was wrapped with many different ribbons over the wrapping paper, each ribbon different.

"Candles first and food first," Theo said. "Here, give me the candles."

"I'm perfectly capable of doing a Sticking charm," Hermione said, pulling away the box of candles.

Rachel smiled and watched as Hermione began to stick the candles to the strudel while Luna brought Theo his present and placed it directly in front of him.

It was nice to be doing something normal and fun. She was still having nightmares, though she was working on them with Torey, and she noticed that the worse the nightmares were the more distracted and unable to focus she was during the day. The nights she got to take Dreamless sleep were a huge relief, once she got past the initial discomfort of taking the potion. She'd also noticed that Severus had been overprotective lately, though she couldn't tell whether that was because of what she'd told him, because she'd fallen from her broom, or because there had been a sighting of Sirius Black two towns over.

Theo's birthday made for a bright spot near the end of November and Rachel was grateful for the excuse to celebrate.

"There we go," Hermione said as she lit the candles and pushed the strudel over to Theo. "Make a wish."

Theo closed his eyes and paused for a moment before he blew out the candles. They cheered and clapped. "Give me the knife and I'll serve it," he said, taking it before Hermione had the chance. He quickly ended the Sticking charms and set the candles aside.

"What'd you wish for?" Ginny asked.

"You can't say, the Ourotep is offended when wishes are made out loud and then they don't come true," Luna said quickly.

"What is the Ourotep?" Neville asked, accepting a plate with strudel from Theo.

"The real question is 'who is the Ourotep?'. The Ourotep is a wish spirit that works on luck magic. Nobody knows its true name. It hears wishes when people make a genuine wish, and tries to help them come true if it judges you to be worthy," Luna explained.

"Hopefully I'm worthy then," Theo said, passing a plate to Rachel.

"I don't see why you wouldn't be, as long as your wish was genuine and noble," Luna said.

Theo grinned. "Well, I don't know about noble, but it was genuine at least."

Rachel was curious, but knew better than to ask. She had no idea what Theo might wish for.

"Open your present," Ginny instructed once the plates of strudel had been passed out.

Rachel leaned to the side so she could see Theo's expression when he realized what his gifts were.

It took Theo some time to get all of the ribbons off the gift and then he finally unwrapped it to find three secondhand books. "Finding the Animal Within," Theo read from the cover as he held up the first one.

"It took some doing but we found the top three books that are referenced in the Animagus transformation process. Then we had to use other sources to find them because Flourish and Blotts wouldn't sell them to us because they don't carry books like that," Millie explained.

"Daddy knows some people in the print industry," Luna said.

"Thank you," Theo said as he looked over the books. "I don't know how soon I can manage it, but I definitely want to try it."

"And, if you wouldn't mind letting us look through them once you've had a chance to read them, that would be nice. I don't plan on going through the Animagus process myself, but I'd like to know more about the theory," Hermione said.

"Of course," Theo said. "I'll probably want feedback from all of you on how to make this work."

"And do something to disguise the covers," Neville said. "These aren't the sort of books you want to let people know that you have."

Theo nodded. "You're right. I'll switch out the covers from some of the books in my trunk. Thank you all, really. This is more than I could have asked for."

Rachel smiled. She was glad that Theo liked the gift since it had been her idea. Of course, when she'd thought of it, she hadn't realized how difficult it would be to get those books. They were lucky Luna's father knew where to go.

"We're glad you like them, Theo. Happy birthday," Millie said.

"Rachel?" Theo asked a little while later, after they'd all finished their strudel.

"Yeah?" Rachel asked, leaning to the side so she could see Theo.

"Would you mind teaching us what Professor Snape is teaching you about casting the Patronus charm?" Theo asked.

"Oh, yes," Hermione said. "I'd like to learn that too."

Rachel hesitated, as of yet she hadn't managed even a non-corporeal Patronus. "I can try, but Professor Snape says it's a quite difficult spell. I still haven't managed it yet."

"Maybe if we're all trying it together we can figure it out," Ginny suggested.

"Yeah, that way if one of us gets it, we can help the others with what it feels like to cast it," Neville said.

Rachel nodded. "The first thing Professor Snape had me do is come up with a list of happy memories and practice visualizing them and remembering how they felt. After that it's a matter of holding onto that feeling and that memory while you cast the spell."

"Alright, so let's add creating a list of happy memories to our homework list for this week and we can try out the spell next weekend," Hermione said, already opening her planner.

Rachel nodded again and tried not to worry about struggling with the Patronus charm. She still had time to figure out a better memory to use before she practiced with Severus that evening after dinner.