Neville was worried the day Kyle left. He was even more worried the next day. By the third day, he was doing all he could not to panic or run off and try to find her. He was thankful that Twilly and Beezer were keeping him pretty well occupied with reading old books to search for any mention of magic disappearing in history, but they'd had no luck so far. He was also making sure to tend to his greenhouses to the best of his ability without magic, remembering to steer clear of dangerous plants. As much as he loved them, he wasn't willing to risk life or limb to prune something that bit.

That day, after he had given up searching, he had a light lunch in the Great Hall and headed back towards his office. He needed to clear his head and decided to take a nap to try and will the day to go by faster. He promised himself that he would keep searching in the library after he woke up.

He opened the door to his office and dropped the shoulder bag, used to carry his sparse notes. Something unfamiliar caught his eye at his desk. He snapped his head to look, and there sat Kyle, silent as she watched him with her hands folded in her lap.

Neville straightened himself up. Words failed him for a second before he managed to croak out, "You're back!"

Kyle gave him a crooked little smile and a nod. "Yeah, I'm back. Sorry for disappearing like that. I was… upset."

Neville wrung his hands as he came to the desk and leaned carefully on the edge of it. "Don't apologize. That was a lot for Hermione to spring on you." He felt the lump in his throat, the curiosity knotting deep in his stomach. But he also wanted to give her the opportunity to tell him on her own time what happened after she left. "I only wanted you to be okay. How are you feeling?"

"Still in some pain. Trying not to do too much in the way of stretching or twisting around, but luckily, it's not too bad, just slows me down a bit. Mom did a good job fixing me up." She sat up a bit straighter and fiddled with some pieces of parchments on his desk—leftover assignments that there was no point in grading right now. Her following question, whispered into the still air, took Neville by surprise. "Do you judge me?"

"Why? Kyle, why would I judge you? I don't think you've done anything worth judging. Not in a bad judging way, at least." He furrowed his brow at her and again was unnerved when she turned her face towards him and looked at him with those strange blue eyes. They changed her whole appearance and gave her a wild look so unlike the soft, nurturing look she had before.

"Do you judge me for being… not human?"

Quiet came upon them for a brief moment as the realization seeped into him. Her voice was worming it's way from his ears down to his toes.

"No. No, of course not. Who you're born to doesn't change the person you are."

"I'm hardly a person, Neville. I've gone my whole life thinking I was a freak for doing wandless magic earlier than my peers. But it turns out I'm even more of a freak than I ever expected. Last night I learned how to breathe underwater, how to make others breathe underwater. I can control currents. I can speak to the ocean."

Neville jerked back to his feet, wanting to defend Kyle from herself. "We grew up with a part-Goblin professor. A ghost professor. A half-giant professor. All of them are still people, and good ones at that. It doesn't matter where your blood comes from, or how many types of blood you have. Isn't that what we fought for? What people died for? Personhood is about defining your life for yourself, not letting where you come from choose for you. You're not a freak, so don't treat yourself like one."

She cast her gaze down, looking sullen. "My brother knew. Apparently, they had even tried to tell me when I was a child, but I thought my mother was telling me stories to entertain me. When I got my letter, they figured it was… easier to let me believe I was a witch. I guess I've always been stubborn. Hell, Neville, I didn't even notice my mother doing magic in front of my face."

"You know now. That's enough."

"I guess. I'm a little behind on the learning curve, however." Kyle reached over and took Neville's hand. "There's a ton that I still don't know. I can't learn everything in a day. But gods are real, demigods are real, even if myth and time has stretched the truth out. A lot of things are real that we have no knowledge of. My mother doesn't have all the answers, either, because she left that world a long time ago. But I know she has enough information to get me started on figuring out what happened to human magic. I came back to let you know, and to let Kingsley know. I'm going to leave and try to figure it out so that we can put everything back in order."

"It's going to be a few days before you can talk to Kingsley," Neville said, brushing the back of her hand with his thumb. "He's out of the country trying to coordinate research efforts with other magical government officials. So just… stick around for a little while. Don't go running off, please."

Kyle paused for a second, looking torn on the issues, but finally nodded. "Sure. I'll wait."

Neville smiled and leaned down to kiss her softly. "Good. I'm not ready for you to go away again. Let me be a little selfish." Kyle stood up from the chair to kiss him back, placing one hand on his shoulder and the other against his cheek.

"Be selfish, then, Nev," she whispered, as his lips slid to her neck, just under her jaw. "Gods, be selfish." Neville didn't know what came over him, but he soon had her pulled against him, trying to be gentle with her injuries but dying to be close to her. His fingers brushed down her sides to her waist while he nipped at her collar, making her giggle as she stood on her tiptoes to give him better access. He wanted to suggest they move out of his office, but he couldn't get the words out before there was a loud knock at the door. They moved apart, her face flushed, and he looked back towards the door.

"Hold that thought," he said, standing straight again and moving to the door. It was Minerva, looking as stern as always, but he caught the faintest little smile as he flung the door open and her eyes landed on Kyle, somewhat disheveled, coming to the door with him.

"I was coming to check on you. Some of the others were worried about you since everything happened. But I see Madam Cunningham has come back to us. Good to see you, feeling well?"

"Better," Kyle said. Before Neville could even say anything, Kyle continued, "Since you're here, it's best that I go ahead and explain everything. Do you have time for tea?"

Minerva came to sit down despite her expression of confusion and worry. Neville could see the stress on her face. She looked like she hadn't slept well since the day magic stopped, and she was moving slower than he ever remembered. Kyle began making tea while Neville took his seat behind the desk. Once everyone had their cups and had all adjusted themselves, Kyle recounted everything, starting from when Hermione brought up her theory.

The fifty Nereids, daughters of Nereus, were born in the Aegean Sea. They were gifted with strong magic. They used this magic to help the gods and sailors who found themselves lost, shipwrecked, or in need. But, as worship in ancient Greece began to change, the Nereids were either abandoned and forgotten, or hunted by those who viewed them as demonic rather than godly. Kyle's mother, who fled and roamed the sea for centuries before settling in Skye, believed that only four of her sisters remained, the rest dead.

Actaea had revealed all of this to Kyle, in much greater detail, and showed her many things the Nereids were capable of. Kyle mentioned that things from childhood made much more sense now, that her mother had been using magic for so long, but it was never explicit. She explained how her mother gave in and let Kyle believe she was just a Muggle-born witch, but that her father and brother had both known for a long time.

"I think, Headmistress, that something my mother knows may help us fix things. I don't know how yet, but once I let Kingsley know what's happening, I'm going to find out."

Minerva set her cup down, much calmer and more collected than most anyone would be upon hearing such a story. "It does explain much of what is happening. Not everything, but I hope that will come in time. I advise you to be careful with who you give this information to. I trust Kingsley won't reveal anything for as long as he can, but this may not be something you wish to tell anyone at the moment. If you intend on going off and searching on your own, you may encounter problems if people find out."

Kyle nodded, sipping her tea while she thought. "For now, it's best to keep this between us, and Hermione is trustworthy as well."

Minerva stood up, taking a moment to straighten her robes. "Of course we'll keep searching for answers here, and if I get any news, I'll be sure to pass it along. For now, get some rest, Miss Cunningham. You've had a very rough few days, and I imagine you'll need your strength for whatever you find yourself doing."

Neville and Kyle saw Minerva out and watched for a moment as she strolled back up to the castle. There was a lot to think about, a lot to prepare for, Neville figured. And he made up his mind while Minerva was advising Kyle. He wasn't going to let her go out and risk her life alone, magic be damned.